Chelsea

Chelsea

Premier League • England

Chelsea axe to fall on Madueke with £30m fee going towards blockbuster striker signing in January

Noni Madueke, Chelsea

Noni Madueke could leave Chelsea in January having struggled for minutes under Mauricio Pochettino.

Chelsea will look to sacrifice Noni Madueke in order to make way for a star striker in January, sources have told TEAMtalk.

The Blues are desperate to add to their striking options in the upcoming transfer window and are looking at players they can sacrifice in order to bring in a top forward without falling foul of future Financial FairPlay regulations.

Madueke is seen as the perfect sacrifice and a player who could bring in some decent money that would go towards a new forward.

Christopher Nkunku and Armando Broja are also under the spotlight, with heavy links to Ivan Toney and Victor Osimhen remaining.

Winger Madueke has struggled for game time, is not in the plans of manager Mauricio Pochettino and the relationship between the pair has cooled in recent weeks.

This has left Madueke on the fringes of the first team and seeking an exit from the club, in the hope of more minutes and the chance to make the senior England squad for the upcoming European Championship in Germany.

The 21-year-old only joined the club in January this year and was seen as a huge coup by then-manager Graham Potter. However, he has not been one for Pochettino and looks set to leave the club just a year after signing a long-term deal.

The wide man is under contract at Stamford Bridge until at least 2030 and his deal also includes the opportunity for Chelsea to activate a one-year extension, potentially taking his deal all the way to 2031.

At the time, the Blues believed they had signed one of England’s best emerging players and tied him down to a deal that would see him play a key role in turning Chelsea back into title contenders, but things have not gone to plan.

That’s underlined by the fact he’s played just 119 minutes in the Premier League this season despite the Blues struggling in 12th place.

Madueke eyeing Premier League stay

There is major interest from the English Premier League and Madueke would prefer to stay in the world’s best division. There is also interest in Europe and it’s expected there will be bids from the continent in January.

Any attempt to sign the winger will have to at least match the £30million Chelsea paid for him when he signed from PSV Eindhoven almost 12 months ago.

If that sum is matched, conversations will be open to a potential permanent deal.

Chelsea will seek to bring in two to three new players and Madueke is one of several fringe men the club will sacrifice in a bid to get fresh talent and try to salvage what has been a very poor season so far.

TEAMtalk recently revealed a host of players including Malo Gusto and Marc Cucurella have also been told they can leave.

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