Chelsea are reportedly ready to cancel their plans to offer Conor Gallagher a new contract and will look to shift him in January despite the midfielder captaining Mauricio Pochettino’s side just days ago.
Gallagher, who had attracted interest from Tottenham back in the summer, has emerged as a key player under Pochettino this season, playing 15 times in the Premier League and skippering the team on numerous occasions. The England international only has 18 months left on his current deal and there had been discussions about extending his contract.
However, a formal offer has not yet been made and negotiations are said to have stalled. And now the Daily Mail claim that some Chelsea figures are arguing over whether or not to put him up for sale in the January window given the club’s struggles to comply with Premier League spending rules.
With Gallagher’s deal winding down and deficiencies elsewhere in the squad, some inside Stamford Bridge believe it makes financial sense to move the 23-year-old now. Pochettino welcomed over £175million worth of midfield talent in the summer and will have the likes of Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Carney Chukwuemeka and Lesley Ugochukwu to call upon should Gallagher be sold.
The Chelsea boss has made it clear he is desperate to sign a striker and made a public plea for new players following Sunday’s 2-0 loss against Everton but the club are close to breaching Profit & Sustainability Rules after splashing out £400m on recruitments in the summer.
The same report claims that Chelsea must now sell before they can buy in January, meaning Pochettino may have to allow Gallagher to leave in order to raise funds for his striker search.
Victor Osimhen and Ivan Toney are among Chelsea’s prime targets but both could cost around £100m. It’s claimed that Tottenham would revive their interest in Gallagher should he be transfer listed having held talks with Chelsea over a move in the summer.
West Ham were also keen but both clubs refused to meet Chelsea’s £45m valuation. Gallagher has been one of few standouts in what has been a woeful start to the season, with Chelsea down in 12th after their latest defeat.
The England midfielder admitted the dressing room was left deflated after being well beaten by Everton on the weekend. He said: “We were desperate to come here and play well and get three points. We haven’t managed to do that and everyone is gutted. We need to improve and know how to win [these types of] games. There is a lot of work to be done.
“We worked hard and I thought we were playing well, battling well, but credit to them. It’s a tough game when you come here. The way they play is difficult. I thought we dealt with that well until the first goal went in. It was a really tough game and everyone is disappointed. There is a lot of stuff we can improve on to help us win these games.”
