Chelsea 'closely monitoring' 8-goal Premier League forward who is 'very intense'

Chelsea are being linked with a move for a Premier League forward as they begin planning for next season, The Blues are in the midst of a top four battle in the Premier League, albeit the battle will likely turn into a top five tussle given England is on course for an extra Champions League spot.

A frustrating home draw with Ipswich Town did not help Enzo Maresca’s men, especially with results elsewhere going against them. Chelsea are now sixth, two points behind Newcastle United in fourth and one point behind Manchester City in fifth.

It’s going to be an ultra-close battle for those final Champions League spots, with Nottingham Forest only three points ahead in third, too, but Chelsea need to find form quickly if they want to sneak in, having been inconsistent for weeks.

In the meantime, the Chelsea recruitment staff must press on with plans for next season, likely having a differing budget depending on whether Champions League football is secured. A number of players are already being linked with a move to Stamford Bridge ahead of the summer, and one of the latest is a current Premier League forward.

Brighton striker Georginio Rutter is reportedly of interest, with Florian Plettenburg reporting on X: “Excl | Chelsea are closely monitoring the development of Georginio #Rutter and have added him to their shortlist for the next transfer windows. #CFCThe 22-y/o versatile forward is currently out with a foot injury but has had a strong season with Brighton, scoring eight.”

Rutter only joined Brighton from Leeds United last summer, joining for a fee of around £40million having joined the Whites for well in excess of £30million. Since returning to the Premier League, where Rutter has initially struggled as a young player with a struggling Leeds side, the forward has scored eight goals and assisted five times in 34 appearances across all competitions.

Rutter has grown into Premier League

Hurzeler has previously said of Rutter’s Premier League adaption : “I think he showed that he adapted to the Premier League, that he can play very intense, that he can be resilient in personal duels. There were a lot of personal duels (on Saturday) and he proved that he can win the majority of them, and that's why I'm happy with him.”

On his limited play time early on, the Brighton boss added: “There were always some small issues with his muscles and therefore we also need to protect his health. I know it is not always understandable why we choose the starting XI but there are so many things going on and the main thing for me is I am responsible as well for the person behind the player, to protect him, to protect his health, to protect the young players.”

Given Rutter only recently joined Brighton and the fact he is only 22 years of age, it’s likely the Seagulls would demand a big fee in excess of £50million to sell, although Chelsea are used to paying the South coast club big money from deals like those involving Marc Cucurella, Robert Sanchez and Moises Caicedo.

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