Manchester United have offered Chelsea a rare Cristiano Ronaldo and Frenkie de Jong transfer opening as the Red Devils look into a £51million swoop.
Erik ten Hag's and Thomas Tuchel's side have been linked to the same targets this summer but the main one has clearly been midfielder Frenkie de Jong. At one point, United were the favourites to sign him but then the pendulum swung Chelsea's way. The truth is that the 25-year-old wants to stay put at Barcelona for 2022/23, so that he can eventually win in the deferred wage battle with the club.
football.london understands that Todd Boehly will press ahead with a deal towards the end of this summer's transfer window if he is given the indication the player's side that he is willing to move. Otherwise, the Blues have made no secret that they could walk away. Inter Milan's central midfielder Cesare Casadei is set to become the sixth recruit this summer and as a result of this signing, the Blues will likely not panic buy a new midfielder to compensate for N'Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic injury woes. So it seems it's De Jong or bust this summer for the Blues.
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Instead, the focus from Boehly in these last two weeks seems to be not only on defence but also in attack. With both Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Anthony Gordon both on the agenda, there is no guarantee that both or even one will complete a move before the deadline.
Therefore, alternatives for the striker position need to be considered as Tuchel aims for sufficient competition to battle it out with Kai Havertz and Armando Broja week in, week out.
Step into the ring Cristiano Ronaldo, and despite Tuchel rejecting the Portuguese initially, it is understood that if the Aubameyang move doesn't come to fruition, then the manager could do a U-turn on the 37-year-old who is now deemed as surplus to requirements by Ten Hag with an exit now back on the table, according to the Manchester Evening News.
What makes Ronaldo and De Jong to Chelsea a real possibility now is what Man United have done. It is understood that Richard Arnold and Co are looking into a cut-price £9million deal for Lyon striker Moussa Dembele to replace the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.
On top of this, alongside Adrien Rabiot who is expected to become Ten Hag's newest addition soon, Marca are reporting that Real Madrid stalwart Casemiro, valued at around £42million, is a real possibility at this late stage of the transfer window with Aurelien Tchouameni's signing and Eduardo Camavinga's emergence meaning the Brazilian veteran is now dropping down Carlo Ancelotti's pecking order.
Chelsea fans will certainly hope moves for Casemiro and Dembele to Old Trafford happen as it will then hand Boehly the initiative to go and complete the De Jong and Ronaldo transfers at the expense of the team who are currently sat rock bottom of the Premier League after two games played.
Chelsea fans - on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being impossible and 10 being extremely likely, how would you rate Todd Boehly's chances of landing both Cristiano Ronaldo and Frenkie de Jong before the September deadline? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below!
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