Chelsea forward Liam Delap has been linked with a move to Everton in recent weeks, less than a year after checking-in from Ipswich Town, whereas Nicolas Jackson also does not seem to have a future at Stamford Bridge when he returns from loan.
Liam Rosenior would likely be left short of options to lead the line as only Joao Pedro would be available to him, possibly alongside the less experienced Marc Guiu, therefore opening the door for the club to bring in a number nine.
Football Insider has reported that a shock transfer for Cristiano Ronaldo could be on the cards this summer. The Blues are keeping tabs on his future at Al-Nassr, amid the Portuguese’s recent boycott over the Saudi PIF’s lack of investment in the club.
In spite of turning 41 earlier this year, Ronaldo is one of the world’s best marksmen having scored 21 goals and provided three assists this season in all competitions, and would be an exciting short-term option for Chelsea to pursue during the summer.
An unlikely proposition
Even though Chelsea may be linked with Cristiano Ronaldo from the outset, it is difficult to think that the Blues would be willing to disrupt their sporting project revolving around signing younger players to accommodate a forward in the dusk of his career.
With that said, Ronaldo also may not be open to returning to Europe as he will need to compromise massively on his pay cheque, and his only motivational factor after the World Cup is likely to score 1,000 career goals, which is more achievable with Al-Nassr.
Nonetheless, there may be some truth in Chelsea’s desire to sign a consistent source of goals to compete with Joao Pedro for minutes in the final third and it remains to be seen if there are any concrete names on their shortlist.
