Chelsea have been handed a damning response to their first January offer for Crystal Palace stalwart Marc Guehi, with Enzo Maresca’s side believed to be seriously keen on re-signing the England international before February 3.
Chelsea register interest in January deal for Marc Guehi
Injuries to Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile have intensified the need for another world-class centre-back, and one who could be a fixture in Maresca’s backline for years to come.
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Chelsea eyeing January move for £329k-per-week Barcelona duo and Marc Guehi
The west Londoners are considering a Camp Nou raid.
Chelsea have been scouring the market for another central defender for months, even before Fofana and Badiashile were confined to the treatment table, and it is believed bringing one in is their top transfer priority for the winter (Simon Phillips).
There are believed to be a few interesting names on their shortlist, from both abroad and in the Premier League.
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Chelsea’s next Premier League fixtures |
Date |
|---|---|
|
Bournemouth (home) |
January 14 |
|
Wolverhampton Wanderers (home) |
January 20 |
|
Man City (away) |
January 25 |
|
West Ham (away) |
February 3 |
|
Brighton (away) |
February 14 |
Benfica’s Antonio Silva and Tomas Araujo are under consideration at Stamford Bridge, as are Bournemouth’s Illia Zabarnyi and Dean Huijsen (Simon Phillips), with other reports suggesting that Chelsea are also monitoring Barcelona’s Jules Koundé and Ronald Araujo.
However, as of now, it is Guehi who appears to be grabbing all the headlines as a top centre-back target. The 24-year-old’s stellar 2024 saw him perform impressively at the Euros with England, filling in for the injured Harry Maguire to great effect, and he stood out as one of Palace’s star players at club level.
Eagles chairman Steve Parish rejected a plethora of summer bids from Newcastle United to keep hold of their influential defender, and Guehi has rewarded Palace with an array of accomplished performances this campaign.
The former Chelsea man has started 19 out of 20 league games for Palace this season as a mainstay of Oliver Glasner’s back three, prompting serious interest from his old club.
Now, according to a report from The Sun, that interest has materialised into a formal winter bid.
Chelsea receive reply to opening Marc Guehi bid
As per the newspaper on their live blog [January 7, 03:00], Chelsea have tabled a “cheeky” opening January bid for Guehi, but Palace are far from impressed with their first approach.
The Three Lions ace is valued at around £55 million, with a Selhurst Park source telling The Sun that Chelsea’s offer is far below his asking price and deemed “silly”. As a result, Palace are set to snub their latest advances.
“Their offer was a long way off being a fair price,” said the source. “It was silly really, and they need to offer more to even have a hope of getting a deal done.”
Guehi has just 18 months left on his contract, perhaps explaining Chelsea’s decision to make a lower financial proposal than expected, but the player’s quality and pedigree highlights why Parish is still demanding a hefty sum to sell mid-season.
“When he plays for England he probably goes up another level as well,” said ex-interim England boss Lee Carsley.
“I still think there is a lot more to come from Marc. Physically, he’s fast and he’s aggressive. On the ball, he is excellent as well so he just needs to keep improving.”
