Chelsea have added Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres and FC Copenhagen’s Roony Bardghji to a five-man striker shortlist, as they plot a move for a new frontman in January.
Mauricio Pochettino has suggested Chelsea need to spend again to boost their firepower and he wants a targetman-style forward to add height, physicality and goals to his team.
Gyokeres, a 6ft 2in Sweden international who has scored 15 goals in 18 matches for Sporting this season after moving to Portugal from Coventry last summer, fits that profile. The 25-year-old has an £87million release clause.
Napoli’s 6ft 1in forward Victor Osimhen is also high on the Chelsea wishlist, while they also have interest in Brentford’s Ivan Toney who is the same height.
Teenager Bardghji, who announced himself when he downed Manchester United in the Champions League in November, is a different profile of player.
He is a versatile forward who has been dubbed the 'Swedish Messi' and is wanted by most of the top clubs in Europe.
Chelsea are also interested in Club Brugge teenager Antonio Nusa, having had a £23m bid rejected for him on deadline day in the summer.
The Blues are confident they can spend more in the transfer market and still stay within Financial Fair Play rules, despite spending over £1billion on new players under owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
But they may look to sell some homegrown players to give them more room to manoeuvre, including Trevoh Chalobah, Ian Maatsen, Malang Sarr and possibly even Conor Gallagher.
Chelsea face a big decision over whether to shift from their recent transfer policy and rip up their wage structure to land a top-class striker in January.
The club have targeted young players in the past two transfer windows and, while they are confident that strategy will come good in the long-term, Pochettino wants a prolific goalscorer ready to make an immediate impact.
Napoli demanding well over £100m for Osimhen and a January deal seems unlikely for the Nigerian, who was on Monday named 2023 African Footballer of the Year.
Brentford could also demand close to £100m for Toney and both players would want well in excess of £100,000-a-week.
Gyokeres scored 22 goals for Coventry in the Championship last season and feels a more gettable option in January, but any deal could still prove expensive.
