The Blues have only just appointed Enzo Maresca and it is already looking like the Italian will face the same issues that Mauricio Pochettino faced in his only stint at the club.
The Argentine manager dealt with an overloaded squad which also had a lot of injuries but managed to turn things around in the second half of the 2023/24 season. He was fired for Maresca, who is now watching as the club continues their acquisition spree.
Their latest target is Spanish-born Samu Omorodion, the Atlético de Madrid striker who spent last season on loan at Deportivo Alavés.
Omorodion started his career with Granada and after scoring against Los Rojiblancos in the earlier parts of the 2023/24 season, he was signed by the Madrid-based club as one for the future.
He was immediately loaned out to Alavés where he cemented his reputation as one of the best young strikers with great performances that helped the club to its best finish in more than half a decade.
He is currently the target of many clubs in Spain and now, Chelsea are looking to sign him for a few that will rise up to £35 million with add-ons. Atléti, however, are not willing to let him go just yet thanks to the uncertainty surrounding Alvaro Morata’s future at the Civitas Metropolitano.
Maresca looks to be at the mercy of BlueCo’s recruitment team but has already outlined the players he believes will be useful to him among the current Chelsea set up. Omorodion’s possible addition will only serve to strengthen the team for the former Leicester City boss to work with as he aims to return Chelsea to the UEFA Champions League next season.
Lesley Ugochukwu, Noni Madueke, Carney Chukwuemeka and Tosin Adarabioyo are Chelsea’s current crop of EU players with Nigerian heritage who are yet to settle on their senior international affiliations. Now, this crop may be joined by Omorodion from Atléti in the summer of 2024.
Nigeria is working to convince these players to change their nationality in the wake of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Omorodion may find it a lot harder to break into the three-time African champions’ squad, however, thanks to the presence of Victor Osimhen, Victor Boniface, Terem Moffi and a host of other brilliant striker and centre forward options at their disposal.
