Chelsea could allow up to six players to leave in the remaining three weeks of January transfer Window, motivated at least in part by raising funds for a possible prosecution of Marc Guehi.
Guehi links have emerged following the injuries to Benoit Badiashile and Wesley Fofana, highlighting the need for further defensive strengthening.
Guehi, who was sold from Chelsea to Crystal Palace for £18m in the summer of 2021, was worth £70m last summer when the England centre-back was the subject of multiple offers from Newcastle United. Chelsea are believed to have a sell-on clause in any future deal with Guehi.
Chelsea have also been linked with a shocking U-turn on Trevoh Chalobah, half a season after completely sidelining the homegrown defender and sending him on loan to Palace.
According to the telegraphThe Blues insist recruiting in January does not equate to panic buying, but they want to be ready to take advantage of the right opportunities.
Cleaning up a bloated squad has been a necessity for some time now, with Chelsea simply having too many first-team players for Enzo Maresca to use on a regular basis. It is clear that Ben Chilwell, Carney Chukwuemeka, Cesare Casadei and even new signing Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall are available for transfer. The club would demand around £60m for Chukwuemeka and Casadei alone, while Dewsbury-Hall cost £30m from Leicester City just six months ago.
The two new and therefore more surprising names cited by the telegraph Who Chelsea would like to be without this month are Axel Disasi and Christopher Nkunku.
Disasi has often captained the team this season, albeit alternately in the Conference League and Carabao Cup. But the £38.5million Frenchman has barely played in the Premier League and has been identified as someone who doesn’t suit Maresca’s style of play.
Nkunku was signed for £52m after a successful spell at RB Leipzig, but his first season at Chelsea was derailed by injuries. He has played significantly more under Maresca than the other players mentioned here, but is still primarily used as a substitute when Premier League livelihoods are at stake.