Chelsea have been handed their price for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as Thomas Tuchel looks for a way to enhance his attacking options before the summer transfer window closes.
The Blues have already added Raheem Sterling to their ranks but moves away from the club for Timo Werner, who is close to re-joining RB Leipzig, and Hakim Ziyech could leave Tuchel short going forward. The German has struggled to get his side scoring the quantities of goals that Liverpool and Manchester City do and it raised concerns after their blunted victory over Everton.
Tuchel and Aubameyang have also previously worked together at Borussia Dortmund and the pair had a brilliant relationship that lasts to this day. The former-Arsenal striker is statistically the second-best goal-scorer Tuchel has ever managed, behind only Kylian Mbappe, and he could be available for a relatively small price.
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Having just joined Barcelona following his departure from the Emirates just seven months ago, Aubameyang has been shunted down the pecking order in Spain due to the signing of Robert Lewandowksi. With the Catalan club also in the middle of a terrible financial crisis, cashing in on the 33-year could be a way to generate more sustainable funds and also allow them to register new players.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Spanish football expert Alvaro Montero thinks that a cheap deal can be done. He said, "if Chelsea for instance comes with 15 or 20 million euros, this economical situation in Barcelona, maybe they have to convince Xavi and the player that leaving is going to be the best option for them.
"So Lewandowski being the first striker will mean Aubameyang is not going to play. Xavi has told the club and the player himself that he wants him to stay. Aubameyang knows that Chelsea want to sign him. Even football club Barcelona do too. The only difference is that Robert Lewandowski is going to be the number 9 for Xavi, for sure, even Aubameyang realises."
The former Premier League golden boot winner scored 11 times and assisted once in his short time at the Nou Camp and is still seen as a viable option in Tuchel's new look flexible front-line, though there hasn't yet been an indication that progress towards a deal has been made as Todd Boehly keeps his striker options open.
Chelsea are also still considering a shock move for Cristiano Ronaldo this window and another attacker could be brought in if deals for Wesley Fofana and Frenkie de Jong are completed in good time. The question would be if there is value in buying a 33-year-old player for upwards of £15-20m when there is little resale value. Kalidou Koulibaly's price at £35m indicates that there is no longer a hard rule when it comes to dealing with ageing players at Chelsea. Armando Broja might see things a little differently.
If Tuchel does want to bring in Aubameyang on a permanent deal, maybe because it's an easier transfer to conclude or because he sees value in keeping him beyond this season, then there will be little argument with that, especially as no Chelsea player has scored more than his 22 league goals in 2018/19 and 19/20 since Didier Drogba in 2010.
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