Newcastle consider barging Man Utd aside to rescue aggrieved Chelsea star Maresca will gleefully sell

Newcastle are ready to send a current star out on loan and replace him with a Manchester United-linked Chelsea ace who has no future under Enzo Maresca, according to reports.

Chelsea have continued to sign more and more players this summer, with the imminent arrival of Joao Felix to take the arrivals tally to 10. Felix passed a medical on Tuesday and confirmation of his deal will be followed by Conor Gallagher flying to Spain to complete a €42m switch to Atletico Madrid. Gallagher will be unveiled as Atleti’s newest recruit on Wednesday.

The Blues have sold their fair share of stars this summer, with the likes of Ian Maatsen, Lewis Hall, Omari Hutchinson and Hakim Ziyech, to name just four, all departing.

READ MORE: All the done deals by Premier League clubs in the summer 2024 transfer window

However, numerous other exits are actively being sought, with left-back Ben Chilwell among the highest profile players expected to leave before the August 30 deadline.

Chilwell, 27, does not feature in new manager Enzo Maresca’s plans. Marc Cucurella is first choice at left-back and is now backed up by new recruit Renato Veiga.

The writing was on the wall for Chilwell in pre-season when Maresca called into question Chilwell’s quality and usefulness to his system.

“Chilly is left-back, for sure,” began Maresca when speaking to reporter Ben Jacobs. “The Chilly situation is a bit delicate.

“We are trying to find a solution for him in terms of a position. He probably needs a bit of time. By delicate I mean in terms of finding his best position, not in terms of [his future at the club].

“We want players that can perform at 100 percent in their positions. I am sure, for instance, Malo [Gusto] and Reece [James] can both do the work required of them in the next two-three days and they can both finish with more assists, or be more dangerous, than they were in the past.

“In that position, they are good enough to make ‘last passes’ or get some assists because their quality is very good.”

TEAMtalk understands Chilwell took an exceedingly dim view of being publicly spoken of in that manner by his manager.

Chilwell is among FOURTEEN stars the Blues aim to shift over the next 10 days and one exit route is a transfer to Manchester United.

Man Utd interest in Chilwell, but Newcastle threat emerges

The Red Devils’ primary focus at present is wrapping up the signing of Manuel Ugarte from PSG. With a new deal structure being discussed and PSG open to accepting, that move is hurtling towards completion.

Once finalised, Man Utd may enter the market one final time to sign a new left-back amid the ongoing fitness issues surrounding Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia.

Chilwell as well as the much cheaper option of free agent Marcos Alonso have come under consideration among Man Utd chiefs.

But per the latest from Caught Offside, Newcastle could swoop before Man Utd have a chance to act.

They state Chilwell has been ‘internally discussed’ at St. James’ Park and is under consideration for a late-window raid.

Eddie Howe’s current options in the left-back position are Dan Burn, Lewis Hall, Matt Targett and Lloyd Kelly.

Matt Targett out, Ben Chilwell in?

However, Burn is currently required at centre-half while Sven Botman continues his rehabilitation from an ACL injury.

Furthermore, TBRFootball state Newcastle are ready to let Targett leave on loan, with Nottingham Forest, Brentford, Fulham and Southampton all hovering.

It stands to reason Newcastle would only wave goodbye to Targett if a replacement were signed.

TEAMtalk understands Chelsea would demand in excess of £40m if selling Chilwell outright. Whether they’d be open to a loan exit is not yet clear.

EXCLUSIVE: Chelsea put big-money French defender up for sale as huge Liverpool raid is prioritised by Maresca