Pep Guardiola laughing after Man City wreck Enzo Maresca latest transfer
Chelsea’s ambitions of acquiring a deadly Premier League attacker have been dashed by Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola will now have a serious selection dilemma, sources say.
This summer, Chelsea is looking to fill a number of jobs. Conor Gallagher has been listed for sale, therefore the Blues want to give new boss Enzo Maresca an upgrade. Gallagher is unwilling to leave, but Chelsea wants to make as much money as they can before Gallagher’s contract expires in a year.
There are plans to put things up front and on the wing somewhere. Chelsea is one of three teams to formally communicate with Crystal Palace about Michael’s transfer; the other two are Newcastle and Bayern Munich.
There’s plenty of hurdles to overcome before Olise can be unveiled at Stamford Bridge, however, such as ironing out a club-to-club agreement on the transfer fee.
Reports have claimed only Champions League clubs can activate Olise’s rumoured £60m release clause. To combat that, TEAMtalk has been told the Blues are prepared to offer a structured deal that totals more than £60m.
Elsewhere, a new striker is wanted to either take the place of Nicolas Jackson or at the very least provide stiff competition.
That’s where Man City enter the frame, with unsettled frontman Julian Alvarez a confirmed Chelsea target.
Chelsea hovering over unhappy Alvarez
The 24-year-old cost just £14m when signed from Argentine side River Plate in the winter window of 2022. The versatile forward quickly made a mockery of that figure upon arriving at the Etihad six months later.
Alvarez scored 17 goals across all competitions in his first season at Man City. The frontman lifted the treble and also added the World Cup to his overflowing trophy cabinet.
Alvarez backed up his impressive first season in England when scoring 19 goals in the 2023/24 campaign. However, despite his free-scoring nature, Alvarez is by no means a regular starter.
Erling Haaland understandably gets the nod at No 9 when fit. Alvarez can play behind the striker, though that’s where Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden are at their best.
As such, Alvarez had to settle for more substitute appearances than he would have liked at this stage in his career. The end result is Alvarez is unhappy with his levels of playing time in Manchester.
Trusted Argentine reporter, Gaston Edul, subsequently reported Chelsea have sensed an opportunity and are fully prepared to launch a sizeable bid. PSG and Atletico Madrid are also admirers of the striker.
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano declared Man City would under no circumstances sanction a loan exit. However, all bets were off if a club were willing to pay City’s rumoured price tag of €80m/£68m on Alvarez.
Guardiola shatters Chelsea dream; selection dilemma awaits
But according to a fresh update from Football Insider, Man City and Pep Guardiola have slammed the door shut on a summer exit in any guise.
They stated City ‘will not entertain any offers’ for Alvarez, thus putting the transfer saga to bed for this window at least.
While news of Alvarez staying at the Etihad is unquestionably positive for Man City, it will raise an issue for Guardiola.
As previously mentioned, Alvarez is unhappy with not being a regular starter, though given the stiff competition for places, it’s hard to pick out a player who should make way.