Maresca offers Nkunku ‘guarantee’ amid Man Utd links as Chelsea boss comes clean on triple selection headache

Enzo Maresca is adamant Christopher Nkunku will not be allowed to leave Chelsea in January amid claims the star is being chased by Manchester United – though the Blues manager has lifted the lid on the problematic triple selection headache he is battling at Stamford Bridge and how he plans to keep all three players happy.

Nkunku arrived at Stamford Bridge in a £53m (€60m, $66m) move from RB Leipzig in summer 2023 in a deal that came with plenty of hype owing to the France star’s excellent record in Germany. However, his time at Chelsea has not gone to plan and the Blues have only seen flashes of what Nkunku is about, owing firstly to injury and secondly to the electric form shown by Cole Palmer.

Indeed, Nkunku has featured in just 32 games for the Blues so far, with only one start in the Premier League – in the opening day’s 2-0 home defeat to Manchester City – to his name this season. Since then, Nkunku has been forced to settle for a substitute role and has not played for more than 15 minutes in any of Chelsea’s last seven games.

That has led to speculation that the star is unhappy with his situation and could ask to leave in January if the situation does not improve before then. As a result, new Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has already been linked with his signature amid claims he would find a quicker route to first-team football at Old Trafford.

However, Maresca is having none of that and insists Nkunku will not be sold. When asked if he can guarantee that, Maresca told a press conference: “Absolutely, yes I completely want Christo to stay with us. I don’t have any idea to allow him to go in January.

“I spoke to Christo days ago and he did not say he was unhappy. For sure, he would like to play minutes, but like many players. We have so many games, especially in December. Since we started, for me, there are not two squads – the squad is only one.

“They can play Conference League or the Premier League. I completely want Christo to stay with us. I don’t have any idea to let him leave in January. Christo’s best position is between the lines as a No 10 but Cole [Palmer] is playing there.

“Joao Felix played a Premier League game the other day against Leicester and Christopher, for sure, is going to play Premier League games. But we have many players, we try to share minutes with all of them.”

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Maresca vows to keep all three Chelsea stars happy; Man Utd links explained

Maresca is also adamant that he can keep all of Palmer, Felix and Nkunku happy at Stamford Bridge, despite all three players seemingly battling for the same position in the Chelsea side.

“The intention, the target is to keep all of them happy, even knowing that sometimes it’s not possible. Now is not the moment or the time to think about January, we are still at the end of November, we still have many, many games, especially in December, then we will see.”

However, Maresca has admitted his issues at sharing gam-time around his bloated squad. He added: “The problem with Chris… it’s not a problem, it’s the same issue and the same thing we mentioned many times about Joao.

“If you play with Cole, if you play with Joao, if you play with Christo, if you play with Noni [Madueke], if you play with Jadon [Sancho]… who is defending? Because their skills are not defending, it’s to attack. We love them, we want them but also we need balance.

“The last game we tried with Joao and Cole together. Hopefully next game or soon we can try Christo and Cole, Christo and Joao, for sure, and the reason why is because we have so many games.

“We are not going to play many games with Cole and Christo, or with Cole and Joao, we played the other day but you need balance. Leicester’s plan won’t be the same as Aston Villa’s plan. They are all fantastic players, they are all going to play games, no doubt. But not every game.”

Despite Maresca’s guarantees, sources have told TEAMtalk that United are keeping an eye on Nkunku’s situation and are considering a move in the winter window if all the dominoes fall into place.

And while securing a move will prove tough, especially given Maresca’s stance, we’ve learned that United are just one of a handful of top clubs around Europe who are bemused by the Frenchman’s lack of minutes at Chelsea and eager to take advantage of that by offering the 27-year-old more regular first-team football.

Chelsea plot outstanding double deal as Man Utd get huge Gyokeres boost

Chelsea, meanwhile, are looking to revamp their defensive line next season with a strong report claiming both Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi and Manchester United target Rayan Ait-Nouri have emerged as major targets for Maresca in 2025.

England man Guehi has plenty of admirers but a clause in his deal gives Chelsea the advantage over their rivals, while the Blues are also boosted by the fact that his current arrangement at Selhurst Park is due to expire in June 2026.

As for Ait-Nouri, the Algerian’s form for Wolves this season has attracted many admirers, including United. However, it seems the Blues are pushing hardest for his signing in a move that would likely spell the end for Ben Chilwell.

Over at Old Trafford, Manchester United have been given a monumental lift in the chase for Viktor Gyokeres after a strong report revealed the Sporting CP striker has made a clear choice to reunite with Amorim at Old Trafford and with the Red Devils also learning the cost for his signing.

Elsewhere, another report claims to have clarity on Amorim’s verdict on the futures of both Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford.

Nkunku’s limited minutes in a Chelsea shirt