Chelsea will not prioritise a deal for Cristiano Ronaldo in January as they continue to pursue AC Milan forward Rafael Leao.
The Blues came close to completing a move for the Manchester United veteran during the summer, only for then-manager Thomas Tuchel to favour Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang instead. However, with Ronaldo’s situation at Old Trafford looking to be resolved in January, links with the Blues are circulating once more.
But it has since been reported that Chelsea manager Graham Potter would rather prioritise a deal for Leao in just over two months’ time. However, rivals United have thrown a spanner in the works with their own interest in the Portuguese.
According to CBS Sports, Potter currently has other forwards in mind above Ronaldo in the pecking order. One of those is Leao, a pre-existing target before he took over.
Ronaldo is growing closer to an exit from Old Trafford following his latest fiasco in which he stormed off down the players’ tunnel before the full-time whistle of last week’s 2-0 victory over Tottenham, having refused to come on as a late substitute.
He has since been banished from the first team squad and forced to train with the club’s youngsters. As a result, this has sparked rumours of a move to Chelsea once more, with Boehly a big fan of the 37-year-old.
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However, Potter prefers a deal for Leao, who the Blues submitted a late bid for on transfer deadline day this summer. They were quickly rebuffed in their attempts as Milan viewed the offer as too low and were not willing to part ways with a star player.
It was also reported that co-owner Todd Boehly was set to hold talks with Milan chiefs, when the two sides played each other in the Champions League on October 5, over a possible deal for Leao.
Milan are desperate to tie the 23-year-old down to a new deal but it has since emerged that he has declined the offer of a contract extension. According to Calciomercato, Leao wants to move away from the Italian capital, with Chelsea put on red alert as a result.
Yet things became more complicated when Mirror Football previously reported that United are also monitoring Leao’s situation as they seek a replacement for the troublesome Ronaldo, putting themselves and Chelsea in an awkward transfer triangle.
Should United sign Leao, then Chelsea may be forced to turn their attention to back to Ronaldo, which could become a win-win situation for the Red Devils. Importantly, though, CBS Sports also claim that Chelsea will not commit to signing Ronaldo without “100% buy-in” from Potter.
