Premier League rivals chase 'fantastic' Chelsea player as new signing passes Blues medical

One Chelsea player has now become a reported target for a Premier League rival after the signing of a new player. The Blues have had a busy summer so far, and they are expected to be busy up until the end of the window given Enzo Maresca’s needs.

Liam Delap was signed very early in the window, and it looks as though Joao Pedro will join the Englishman in the strikers’ room. Pedro is going to join the Blues on a £60 million deal from Brighton after scoring 10 times last season.

Newcastle United were pushing to sign Pedro this summer, but the Blues swooped in to seal a deal, and Fabrizio Romano has claimed on his YouTube channel that the striker has now passed his medical ahead of the deal being announced. Pedro is expected to join Chelsea in Philadelphia this week ahead of their FIFA Club World Cup quarter-final with Palmeiras.

Pedro will now beef up the Chelsea attack ahead of the new season, and with Delap also signed, it will be interesting to see how Nicolas Jackson’s role changes. The former Villarreal man was effectively the only striker options last season, with Maresca not liking the look of Christopher Nkunku.

That won’t be the case for Jackson next season, who has competition for the starting role, and on the back of a couple of silly red cards in the last month or so. With that in mind, Football Insider are reporting that Aston Villa are trying their luck as they look to sign a striker this summer.

It’s claimed Unai Emery is pushing for a Jackson reunion having previously worked with him at Villarreal. Villa lost Jhon Duran last window and they have since decided not to take up the option to buy in Marcus Rashford’s loan deal.

What has been said about Jackson?

“Emery has previously said of Jackson and his time working with the striker: “He was starting the pre-season with the U21s and when he was progressively coming to train with us, he was showing his potential. We worked during the one year on his skill, he improved his understanding better, how he could exploit his potential. And playing minutes and getting experiences was the next step.

“But his attitude as well was fantastic. He was always learning. He was always demanding to train more, to be focused. He was also being a professional every day out of training sessions at home because he was focused on football like the first priority in his life.”

Chelsea boss Maresca has said in response to transfer links and Jackson’s recent red cards: “No, the red card has nothing to do with Nico’s future. He had the first one against Newcastle when Liam was not even here and another one (against Flamengo). I’m not sure that it’s 100 per cent a red card but the referee decided for that, and Nico knows very well that in both situations (it) was not something good for the team.”

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