- Chelsea have enjoyed a fruitful start in the transfer market this summer
- Enzo Marseca’s side secured a return to Champions League football last season
- Watch Every Club World Cup Match Live on DAZN. Sign Up Now
Chelsea have continued their summer spending spree by welcoming a French youth international to Stamford Bridge.
With the first of two transfer windows this summer currently open, the Blues have wasted little time strengthening their squad as Enzo Maresca prepares for a return to Champions League football next season.
Amidst competition from multiple other Premier League sides Liam Delap joined the Blues in a £30million deal from Ipswich earlier this month.
The Manchester City academy graduate had impressed at Portman Road despite the club ultimately being relegated in their first season back in the top flight.
Maresca is said to have been personally influential in Delap opting for a move to Stamford Bridge, having contacted the 22-year-old to lay out his plans for the club.
Meanwhile highly-rated prospect Dario Essugo arrived from Sporting Lisbon last week, after spending last season on loan in LaLiga with Las Palmas.
Chelsea have completed the signing of French youth international Mamadou Sarr from Strasbourg
The deal sees the 19-year-old become the third player to join Enzo Maresca’s side this summer
Their latest signing, Mamadou Sarr, joined the club from Strasbourg on Monday on an eight-year deal.
Sarr has represented his country at multiple youth levels and was most recently part of France’s under-20 side.
However, despite welcoming a number of new arrivals to their ranks already, Chelsea are believed to be pursuing several other deals.
Robert Sanchez largely failed to instill confidence between the sticks last season, and the Blues are reportedly on the hunt for a new No 1 goalkeeper.
Chelsea have been repeatedly linked with a move for AC Milan’s Mike Maignan, with the Frenchman reportedly intent on leaving the San Siro this summer.
Maignan lifted the Serie A title with AC in 2021-22, and is regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in Italy, and now the two clubs are believed to have finally agreed a deal for him to move to the Premier League.
Mail Sport understands that Chelsea had already made a bid worth £12.6m, and the Italian side are thought to have wanted a higher price for their player, but a compromise has seemingly been reached.
According to a recent report from L’Equipe, Maignan is dead set on joining the west London club.
Maignan has reportedly made it clear to Milan chiefs that he is prepared to leave on a free when his contact expires at the end of next season if he isn’t allowed to depart this summer.
Meanwhile another player that has found himself in Chelsea’s crosshairs is Borussia Dortmund’s English starlet Jamie Gittens.
Gittens, who also had a brief stint in the club’s academy as a youngster, made his senior debut in the Bundesliga days after his 18th birthday.
An opening bid of £29.5million was rejected earlier this week, with Dortmund slapping a £40m price tag on the 19-year-old winger.
The Blues are hoping to sign him before Tuesday’s deadline to play in the Club World Cup and are prepared to offer a seven-year contract.
The revamped competition will see an expanded format featuring 32 clubs competing over the course of a month across the United States.
Less than one month after their Europa Conference League triumph Chelsea will kick-off their campaign in Group D against Los Angeles FC on June 16.
Four days later the club will have reunion with their former midfielder Jorginho, who recently completed a move to Brazilian side Flamengo, before rounding out the group stage against ES Tunis of Tunisia.
More to follow.
