Other than ex-Chelsea stars Olivier Giroud and Fikayo Tomori, the Blues faithful will have their eyes fixated on how transfer target Rafael Leao performs against them come kick-off in their vital Group E home fixture in the UEFA Champions League against AC Milan.
The Blues have spent £270million in the most recent summer transfer window under Todd Boehly's watch but the work hasn't stopped there off the pitch, as alongside Graham Potter and the squad who are working hard ahead of the AC Milan Champions League test this Wednesday, the new owners are already planning for the future.
This isn't only with the new sporting director talks which are expected to ramp up very soon amid the latest Christoph Freund snub but one player from the Red Bull Group for whom the Austrian works for is set to switch to West London.
football.london understands that RB Leipzig star Christopher Nkunku has signed a pre-contract agreement with the Blues ahead of a transfer next summer, in a similar fashion to which Liverpool dealt with the same club for Naby Keita a few years ago.
READ MORE: Graham Potter and RB Leipzig duo break silence on Christopher Nkunku's Chelsea transfer status
Whether more attackers are to be on the agenda alongside the 24-year-old remains to be seen but Potter's response, when asked about Leao, could indicate that multiple signings could be made to further bolster a frontline that has struggled to produce vast amounts of goals, especially under his predecessor Thomas Tuchel.
“I’ve been really impressed with him whenever I’ve watched the games," Potter said on Tuesday afternoon in his pre-match press conference. "He is making a difference for AC Milan and is contributing to how they attack and score goals. So congratulations to him for that.
"He is a top player. In terms of what happens in the future, who knows whether he can do this or not? He has the capability for sure from what I’ve seen because he is affecting the game at the highest level against top opponents.”
Italian reports indicate that face-to-face talks will happen between both clubs this week over a potential transfer but AC Milan's priority is to try and get their No. 17 signed on a new and improved contract.
Whether or not this happens remains to be seen but is all the hype for the 23-year-old justified? Possibly not, as the player in question himself liked a tweet to a controversial Manchester United verdict made by Serie A icon Antonio Cassano, as per Football Italia.
“He would not be a regular starter in the best teams in Europe,” Cassano told Bobo TV on Monday.
“Liverpool have Luis Diaz. Barcelona have Ansu Fati who is 19-year-old. Leao plays in Serie A, not a top league.
“To me, Sancho and Rashford are better than Leao, Sancho is phenomenal. Leao is a mix between Dembélé and Martial. He is not worth €150m he doesn’t score 50 goals per season, therefore he doesn’t really make the difference.”
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