Chelsea could sell Conor Gallagher this week despite pleas from Joe Cole not to offload the “very talented” midfielder. Tottenham are exploring the possibility of a £45million move for the Englishman late into the January transfer window.
Gallagher has captained Chelsea multiple times this season and Mauricio Pochettino wants to keep the player. The 23-year-old also wants to stay at Stamford Bridge having been with the club since the age of eight. But despite those factors, the Evening Standard say a bid of £45m could be enough to persuade Chelsea to sell this month.
A move to Spurs cannot be ruled out because he has only 18 months left on his contract and, as an academy prospect, any sale would go down as pure profit on the Blues’ books. With the Londoners looking to avoid breaching Profit and Sustainability Regulations, such a deal would be helpful for their finances.
CIES Football Observatory’s statistical model argues that Gallagher’s transfer value is approximately £42.5m (€49.8m). That means pulling in £45m for the Cobham graduate would actually represent a decent return in the circumstances, despite some – such as former midfielder Cole – opposing a sale.
The CIES model scientifically predicts transfer fees that clubs would be likely to play using prices invested in the past for players with similar characteristics. Their estimations include any potential add-ons.
Gallagher’s estimated figure makes the 11-cap England international more valuable than some of the Premier League’s biggest names. Manchester City’s Erling Haaland is the highest-valued player in the league at just under £215m.
But there is a huge drop down when it comes to his chief rival for the Golden Boot – Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah – who is only valued at £39.5m. That is because the Egyptian is 32 this summer and will enter the final 12 months of his current contract at Anfield in July.
While Gallagher is in a similar contractual scenario, he only turns 24 on February 6. That means he will be eight years younger than Salah at the start of next season and there is also a premium that comes with buying homegrown players, which puts him at a higher figure.
Tottenham’s Son Heung-min, like Salah due to turn 32 this summer, is valued even lower. CIES suggest a club would be likely to pay around £30.5m to sign the South Korean captain despite his quality. That is because, like Salah and Gallagher, he is out of contract in 18 months’ time although Spurs are expected to activate a one-year clause to extend his stay until 2026.
Despite his sale value, Cole has begged his old club Chelsea not to sell Gallagher. He said on the Obi One podcast: “He’s got ability. Believe me, I’ve seen him up close, he’s a very talented player. I think he’ll keep getting better in the same way that Jordan Henderson did at Liverpool.
“I think it would be a travesty if Chelsea let him go. They’re talking about homegrown players, then talking about him going to Tottenham! Please don’t. If I could speak to the owners now… Is Conor as gifted as Enzo (Fernandez)? Arguably not, technically, but if I’m picking a team I need to win he’s playing every week.
“If someone’s listening at the club, please, please keep Conor Gallagher. Forget how much money he’s worth on the spreadsheet, find the money somewhere else. The kid’s going to get better and better and he’s going to be a massive player for Chelsea.”
Chelsea’s highest-valued player per CIES is Enzo Fernandez. The Blues paid a record fee of £107m for the Argentine World Cup winner, who CIES value at almost £106m. The next highest player is Cole Palmer, signed for £42.5m and rated at a massive £90m thanks to his form, age and contract situation.
CIES have broken down a list of the world’s top 100 highest-valued players, with five Premier League players featuring in the top 10. Six Chelsea players feature in the full list. Check out their report.
