According to rumors that a major summer clear-out may be in the works at the Parc des Princes, Chelsea might be one of several well-known teams poised to profit from a potential fire-sale at Paris Saint-Germain this summer.
Chelsea could be one of several clubs to profit from a fire-sale at PSG (Image: GETTY)
Reports within the French media suggest the Ligue 1 champions may have to raise cash this summer with budget cuts and that could be music to the ears of several Premier League sides given some of the talent currently at PSG’s disposal.
Express Sport analyses four players that could hypothetically be of interest to Chelsea this summer if PSG are indeed willing to cash-in on a number of their first team players.
Gianluigi Donnarumma
Donnarumma is perhaps the signing that would make the most sense from a Chelsea perspective.
The Blues are still enduring struggles between the posts with Kepa Arrizabalaga simply not up to scratch, despite the vast improvements he has made under Graham Potter since his appointment in September.
Kepa was once again criticised on Sunday as Chelsea fell to a 2-0 defeat at Tottenham after the Spaniard flapped at a long-range strike from Oliver Skipp that went in off the crossbar.
Edouard Mendy is still yet to make his return from injury but long-term, there is a sense that neither goalkeeper is good enough for the level Chelsea desire.
Donnarumma was the best goalkeeper at Euro 2020 and although PSG are unlikely to be keen on losing the Italian, he is an option that must surely fall under consideration given that he is now among the best No 1s in world football.
Gianluigi Donnarumma would be a superb signing for Chelsea (Image: Getty)
Achraf Hakimi
Hakimi is a player that is of interest to Chelsea and the Blues have previously looked into the signing of the Moroccan, who seems more than content in Paris.
He would be a top-class rival for Reece James and would also represent a firm upgrade on seasoned veteran Cesar Azpilicueta.
Furthermore, his potential arrival would hypothetically give Potter or any other Blues boss the chance to shift James to a right-sided centre-back role.
It’s a position where James has previously thrived for both Chelsea and England and Hakimi’s arrival would immediately take the club’s defence to a new level of quality.
Again, it’s unclear whether PSG would entertain the sale of Hakimi who is an integral player but if he was up for grabs, this deal would make perfect sense for the Blues.
Neymar
It’s a move that could divide opinion but there has been a lot of speculation in recent weeks that Chelsea could be in the hunt for Neymar.
The Brazilian is yet to test himself on English shores and Chelsea are one of the clubs that would represent a realistic avenue if he was keen to pursue a transfer to the Premier League.
Whether Chelsea need him right now is another question altogether but he would be the kind of superstar signing that Todd Boehly craves.
Neymar is one of the biggest names in world football and there would undoubtedly be financial rewards of bringing him to Stamford Bridge in terms of revenue but ultimately, in football terms, it would represent a massive gamble.
Chelsea do not need to be taking any more risks at this stage of their project, they need to be spending sensibly following their excessive £600million+ splurge.
Neymar has been heavily linked with a future move to Chelsea in the past month (Image: Getty)
Nuno Mendes
Nuno Mendes would be a rather exciting acquisition for the Blues as he would represent a genuine upgrade on their current options at left-back.
Marc Cucurella has been booed in recent weeks by Chelsea supporters and Ben Chilwell just cannot seem to stay fit.
If Cucurella is to depart in the summer – something that is starting to look probable – signing Mendes would be smart business.
Mendes is now one of the best left-backs in world football and is only getting better at the young age of 20. He has not been with PSG long, however, which would raise questions about whether they would be prepared to sell or furthermore, the kind of price they would be looking for.
source: www.express.co.uk
