We wrote earlier this week about the 7 senior players who are set to leave Chelsea.
That list didn’t include senior players who are “maybes”, who would leave only if the right offer came in. That includes Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku, most notably.
But it also leaves out players who aren’t considered first team squad members, like Alfie Gilchrist.
Gilchrist ready to cash in on two solid seasons
The academy product took advantage of an injury crisis at the back during Mauricio Pochettino’s season in charge to become an important squad player, picking up 17 appearances for the Blues during the 2023-2024 season.
That showed his quality to the world and he took a season long loan to Sheffield United last season where he improved that reputation further. Now he’s been lined up for a permanent move, with a number of Championship clubs interested.
Jacobs says Chelsea defender could leave for £5m
Ben Jacobs is well connected at Chelsea, and he claimed that Derby, Watford, Middlesbrough and Blackburn have all “enquired on” Gilchrist this summer. We suspect there could be a few more, given he’s young and relatively cheap.
There’s also been some interesting links to Saudi Arabian clubs – it’s not a very natural move for them, or for Gilchrist, but the salary on offer there is going to be incomparable to those in the Championship, so we’d understand if he was tempted.
Jacobs says that Chelsea are looking for just £5m for the defender, who can play at centre back or right back. that seems cheap to us – we could easily see him being worth a multiple of that after a few good years of Championship action.
He’s buried deep on the depth chart at Chelsea, but is a really solid Cobham-trained talent with tons to offer, and we expect him back in the Premier League before too long.
