Exclusive: Chelsea add Bundesliga goal machine to striker list which includes mega Arsenal target

Fraser Gillan 25 Sep 2024 5:29 PM

Bayer Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface and Victor Osimhen, currently on loan at Galatasaray, are both Chelsea transfer targets - pic copyright of TEAMtalk

Victor Boniface and Victor Osimhen are both Chelsea transfer targets

Chelsea are still in the market for a new striker and deliberations have taken place over who they will move for in the coming months – Bayer Leverkusen’s Victor Boniface.

Victor Osimhen is as widely recognised someone the club would like to bring in but there is another name who has backing at Chelsea.

Boniface is a name that has been brought to TEAMtalk by multiple sources and they are suggesting that there is serious backing within the club to make him the no.1 target.

The Leverkusen man is on a shortlist and ticks many of the boxes that the recruitment team are looking for, due to his age, profile and ability to fit into Enzo Maresca’s system.

He is on Chelsea’s shortlist with Osimhen, Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres and there is also the possibility that Chelsea wait until the summer to make moves due to clubs not wanting to part with targets midway through the season.

Osimhen is assured he will be spoken to by Chelsea again and they will try to make a deal but the stance of Napoli and the cost of alternative options may see the club move in another direction.

There is some belief from sources that the Boniface would cost less in the long run as his wage demands are not as excessive. He would be around the £70m mark which is much less than the likes of Gyokeres.

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Boniface tops Chelsea’s striker shortlist – sources

Chelsea’s interest in a new striker is nothing new, but signing one would create a significant headache for Maresca, who has enjoyed an excellent start to his Blues career.

The former Leicester boss is unbeaten since the opening day of the season defeat to Manchester City, and both Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson are in good goalscoring form.

There have been suggestions that Jackson is not seen as the long-term solution to the Blues’ attacking conundrum, with other reports suggesting Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins is a target.

Arsenal are also consistently being linked with Gyokeres, while Osimhen, who is on loan at Galatasaray, has been linked with PSG, though sources have informed TEAMtalk of new tentative talks with Chelsea.

Boniface, who scored 14 Bundesliga goals en route to helping Bayer Leverkusen win a first Bundesliga title last season, has a contract which runs until 2028.

Lukeba targeted by Chelsea

Meanwhile, Chelsea are also looking at adding a defender to their ranks and sources have told TEAMtalk that Cristello Lukeba is on their list, as well as Real Madrid’s.

The RB Leipzig defender is extremely highly rated having excelled in Germany since leaving Lyon in 2023, and is valued at around £60m.

In other news, former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has compared Moises Caicedo with former Blues man N’Golo Kante, and backed him to improve on a slow start at Stamford Bridge.