Five players Chelsea should buy this summer – and five they should sell ...Middle East

Chelsea will look to build upon a successful end to the season by strengthening Enzo Maresca‘s squad ahead of their return to the Champions League.

The Blues will compete in Europe’s premier competition for the first time in three seasons, having secured a fourth-place finish in the Premier League.

A comprehensive victory over Real Betis in the Europa Conference League final further boosted the good vibes at Stamford Bridge ahead of what is expected to be a typically busy summer.

Promising youngsters Estevao Willian (winger), Kendry Paez (playmaker), Mike Penders (goalkeeper) and Dario Essugo (centre midfielder) will all link up with Chelsea after agreeing pre-contracts in previous transfer windows.

But after keeping their powder dry in January, BlueCo will open the chequebook again to ensure that Maresca’s squad is suitably strengthened to build upon their progress.

Liam Delap, Ipswich Town

It is now a case of when and not if Chelsea buy Liam Delap, with the in-demand striker choosing to move to west London despite interest from Manchester United, Newcastle and others.

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The 22-year-old had a breakthrough Premier League campaign with relegated Ipswich Town, scoring 12 goals – including in a 2-0 win over Chelsea in December – and providing two assists in 37 appearances.

While Maresca is a big fan of Nicolas Jackson, Delap justifiably believes he has a better chance of usurping him than Alexander Isak in the starting XI.

The allure of Champions League football over no European action whatsoever helped sway Delap’s decision between Chelsea and United.

At £30m – the relegation release clause fee in Delap’s contract – Chelsea will feel as though they are getting a bargain given the striker’s considerable upside. It would be an excellent start to their summer business.

Joao Pedro, Brighton and Hove Albion

Joao Pedro seems to be doing his best to engineer an exit out of Brighton, mainly by picking fights with huge Dutch defenders in training.

Fabian Hurzeler axed the talented Brazilian forward from the Seagulls’ squad for their final two fixtures, raising the prospect of a summer switch elsewhere.

Chelsea already have plenty of inbetweener forwards – not quite No 9s or No 10s – but with a couple expected to depart, there could be room for a new one.

Questionable temperament aside, Pedro is an excellent player, as 16 goal involvements (10 goals, six assists) in 27 Premier League appearances this season attest.

Jamie Gittens, Borussia Dortmund

Left wing has been a problem position for Maresca, with Mykhailo Mudryk suspended after failing a routine drugs test, Jadon Sancho’s future unresolved, and Noni Madueke and Pedro Neto preferring to play off the right.

Jamie Gittens could be a solution for Chelsea’s problem position (Photo: Getty)

Jamie Gittens could be the answer after an encouraging couple of seasons with Borussia Dortmund. The 20-year-old scored eight goals in the Bundesliga and four in the Champions League this season.

The England U21 international previously spent time in Chelsea’s academy before following in Sancho’s footsteps by joining Dortmund from Manchester City.

Mario Gila, Lazio

With Dean Huijsen electing to join Real Madrid, Chelsea are back to square one in their pursuit of a new right-sided centre-back.

Marc Guehi has been linked with a return to his former club, but despite being a right-footer tends to play on the left in a back four or five.

Lazio’s Mario Gila is another name that has cropped up after a couple of strong seasons in Italy. A graduate of Real Madrid’s academy, Gila is comfortable on the ball and a good distributor, completing 92 per cent of his passes this season.

At 24 years of age (he’ll turn 25 in August), the Spaniard is an older player than Chelsea tend to go for, but a bit of extra experience in defence wouldn’t go amiss.

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Jadon Sancho, Manchester United

Even if Chelsea do sign Gittens or another right-footed winger to play on the left, they could still benefit from having another.

Sancho is unlikely to scale the heights predicted of him when he was dazzling defenders with Dortmund, but he has proven to be an able squad player at Stamford Bridge.

As reported by The i Paper this week, Maresca has been won over by some of Sancho’s recent displays, including against Betis in Wroclaw, which could see the 25-year-old join permanently for £25m.

Five to sell

Christopher Nkunku

Oh, what could have been.

Christopher Nkunku was meant to be the chosen one, a gifted goalscorer who had lit up the Bundesliga and would do so in the Premier League. Alas, a serious injury delayed his impact and by the time he was fit, Chelsea had become the Cole Palmer team.

A fresh start is needed.

Benoit Badiashile

A deal that just hasn’t really worked out. It’s easy to see the appeal with Benoit Badiashile: a young, physically imposing, left-footed centre-back.

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The problem the Frenchman has is that Chelsea have a much better player with the same characteristics in Levi Colwill, who is two years younger, homegrown and a probable future captain.

Malo Gusto

There is an excellent full-back there but as long as Maresca is in charge, it seems unlikely that Malo Gusto will fulfil his potential at Stamford Bridge.

The 22-year-old had a hugely promising first season under Mauricio Pochettino. Only four defenders registered more Premier League assists than Gusto in 2023-24, despite him only starting half of Chelsea’s games.

However, he has set up just one league goal this term. Gusto is far better suited to overlapping than inverting and is a poor tactical fit for Maresca’s system, as highlighted in the Conference League final when he ceded possession for Betis’ opener.

Joao Felix

You’d forgotten that Joao Felix still plays for Chelsea, hadn’t you?

Chelsea made one of the most bizarre transfer decisions in their, and let’s face it, football, history when buying Felix from Atletico Madrid last summer after an underwhelming loan 12 months before.

He was loaned out to AC Milan within six months and hasn’t done much there either, with two goals and zero assists from 15 Serie A appearances. Selling him would be ideal, but another loan, perhaps back to Benfica, seems more likely.

Raheem Sterling

Presumably, the hope when sending Raheem Sterling across London was that he would rediscover enough form to A) earn a permanent move to Arsenal or B) earn a permanent move somewhere else.

The prospect of option A happening is non-existent, and Sterling’s non-impact at Arsenal – zero goals in 17 Premier League matches – makes option B tricky to pull off too.

With two years left on his contract, Sterling is in limbo. Another loan, this time to a mid-table side, seems likely.

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