As per German outlet SportBILD (via Sport Witness), Chelsea are very close to luring RB Leipzig forward Christopher Nkunku to Stamford Bridge. The report claims that transfer is already prepared and only an announcement is pending.
Despite spending a whopping €271 million in the transfer market last summer, Chelsea remain open to making more additions to their squad under their new owner Todd Boehly.
SportBILD provided insights into the player's situation at RB Leipzig after the club's CEO Oliver Mintzlaff resigned last week to take up a role as one of the three new CEOs of the Red Bull Group. That led to doubts over Christopher Nkuku's potential departure.
The German publication, however, clarified that the development will have no bearing on the player's imminent switch to Chelsea. The report also explains that the situation has already been discussed with Max Eberl, who is set to become RB Leipzig's new director of football.
Eberl is said to have acknowledged that the ‘commitments and preliminary negotiations’ on such deals remain in place. This includes Mintzlaff’s promise to Nkunku that he could depart if a €60m offer was made for him.
Chelsea's interest in Nkunku comes as no surprise. The attacker has been impressive since joining RB Leipzig from PSG in the summer of 2019.
The forward bagged an amazing 35 goals and 20 assists for the Bundesliga giants in 52 appearances across all competitions last season. He has already recorded 16 goals and two assists to his name in 21 games across all fronts this term.
Who else could Chelsea sign in 2023?
Apart from Nkunku, Chelsea have shown interest in a number of players ahead of next year. One such player is Brazilian prodigy Endrick, who is also being closely monitored by Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, and Barcelona, according to GOAL.
The Blues are also keeping tabs on highly talented Mexican winger Alexis Vega, as well as Everton starlet Anthony Gordon.