Midfielder Conor Gallagher is no longer in limbo as one of Chelsea’s forgotten men ahead of the 2024/25 season following the Blues’ latest transfer triumph.
The Cobham academy graduate was made aware of his status within the squad a few months ago and since then, both he and the club have been looking for a suitable solution to his situation. They settled on a transfer away in the end and the player was not short of suitors.
The most prominent of those was Atlético de Madrid, who tried to broker a deal with the Blues by allowing them to prize away an asset that they were reportedly unwilling to let go of at some point. The asset involved was young striker Samuel Omorodion, who they bank their future on.
Chelsea and Atlético entered into talks over a player swap which also involved money changing hands. The Blues were to pay a fee for Omorodion alongside Gallagher but the deal fell through despite reports claiming otherwise.
This left Gallagher in limbo as it became clearer that he was not wanted in Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea. Thankfully, all that is coming to an end as he will be headed back to Madrid to link up with the LaLiga side in a similar deal that almost saw Omorodion wear blue for the 2024/25 season.
The player who he will be replacing this time around is João Felix, who had a loan stint at Stamford Bridge in the last six months of the 2022/23 season.
Chelsea have agreed to sign the Portugal international, who spent last season on loan at Barcelona where he performed incredibly and was in line for a return to the Catalan giants before their priorities shifted elsewhere.
Felix will sign for six years after his medical on Tuesday and Atlético will receive Gallagher and a £42 million fixed fee, plus £4.3 million in add-ons, which could make the Portuguese’s transfer eventually worth in excess of £46 million.
Gallagher will still earn Chelsea some money, however, with Atléti believed to be required to pay around £36 million for the England international. This will be Chelsea’s highest-profile sale this summer but they need to sell more in order to trim down their squad and sign their key target for the window, Victor Osimhen.
The Nigerian’s club want to sign Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku and are offering a loan for the 2024/25 season with an option to buy for £25.5 million in 2025/26. Chelsea want £35 million for the Belgian striker so it is uncertain if they will agree to the deal.
Napoli may throw in Osimhen to sweeten the offer but that is also very unlikely thanks to the Partenopei requiring a fee in excess of £100 million for the Nigerian striker, which Chelsea are unwilling to pay.
