Chelsea 'battle' Tottenham for striker as 5 players made available for transfer

Chelsea are now gearing up for a Premier League date with London rivals West Ham on Monday night after suffering a setback in their top four bid. The Blues lost to Manchester City over the weekend and slipped to sixth as a result.

In the meantime, Enzo Maresca and his staff must negotiate the end of the winter transfer window, which closes on Monday night, and both incomings and outgoings could be on the cards. Here we round up all the latest news and transfer rumours surrounding Stamford Bridge.

Kroupi race

Chelsea are said to be interested in signing a French talent named Eli Junior Kroupi. According to Football Insider, the Blues are battling Spurs for his signature, although the signing would, of course, be one for the future.

Kroupi is an 18-year-old frontman who is currently impressing in Ligue 2 with Lorient. It’s claimed Chelsea and Spurs are ready to push for a deal to beat European clubs to the punch. Kroupi has made 31 league appearances for Lorient so far, scoring five times.

Outgoing latest

A number of outgoings are likely at Chelsea before the end of the window, and according to The Athletic, Axel Disasi will be one of those, with Aston Villa closing in on a deal, with Wolves also interested. Meanwhile, Joao Felix could be allowed to leave if the right offer comes in.

Elsewhere, Chelsea have lowered their asking price for Cesare Casadei to below €15million,they reportedly wanted a sell-on clause worth 35 to 40 per cent. Carney Chukwuemeka or Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall are attracting interest from Everton, with Borussia Dortmund also interested in the former.

Ben Chilwell is also being tipped to move on, but his injury history won’t help him. It’s claimed Chelsea have received no fresh approaches for Chilwell or Dewsbury-Hall at this stage, and there is less than a week to go.

Neville questions links

Gary Neville says he does not understand talk of a move involving Christopher Nkunku heading to Manchester United and Alejandro Garnacho heading to Stamford Bridge. “I don’t get it for United,” Neville told Sky Sports.

“Nkunku’s hardly kicked a ball, he obviously had the injury when he first came in but he’s struggled to get going at Chelsea. I’m not saying Garnacho is the best player in the world and that he needs to stay at Manchester United. If they get good money for him then okay that might work. But to swap him for Nkunku, I have to say that doesn’t feel like I move I would do if I was Manchester United. I can see why you would do it if you were Chelsea.”