Man Utd 'certainly interested' in signing 'lethal' £52m Chelsea man

Chelsea are set to have transfer interest in the services of out-of-favour forward Christopher Nkunku from Premier League rivals Manchester United come January as Ruben Amorim looks to put his stamp on the side.

The 27-year-old has seen his Premier League minutes restricted to cameos and has been fielded by Enzo Maresca in cup competitions. Despite playing less than 700 minutes of football so far this season, the forward has plundered 10 goals in all competitions and it hasn't gone unnoticed.

Football Insider reported earlier this month that Nkunku could push for a move away from Stamford Bridge in order to be given more of a chance to feature in the top flight. Now the outlet has spoken to former Manchester United chief scout Mick Brown about the club's interest in the player.

The scout saw the first signs of talent in Nkunku back in 2021 when Manchester City faced RB Leipzig in the Champions League, witnessing the Frenchman bagging a hat-trick against the Cityzens, and has followed the player's rise.

Man Utd ‘certainly interested’ in versatile Chelsea man

He said: “From what I hear, Man United are certainly interested. I’m told he’s on their list of targets and one they could look to snap up either in January or the summer.

“He’s one of these modern-day players where he’s not really a striker, not really a midfielder, and not really a winger. He’s sort of a combination of all three. So when you look at Amorim’s Sporting team, the forwards are all quick and they play off the back of defenders and put them under pressure.

“Nkunku strikes me as the sort of player who would fit into that perfectly. He’s also more than good enough to play every week at this level. I watched him play a few years ago playing against Manchester City in the Champions League and he played in that sort of inside-right position.

“He caused all sorts of trouble for them with his pace and pressing that day. He scored a hattrick, but his team got beaten 6-3. I was staggered at what I saw. He was lethal.

“Next thing I heard, he was going to Chelsea, but the situation they’re in now is difficult for him. It’s starting to cause problems for them, because players as good as he is want to be playing every week, not just rotated for cup competitions.“

Chelsea forked out £52 million to sign Nkunku in 2023 with the forward putting pen to paper on a lengthy six-year deal. His first season at the club was plagued by injury.

Enzo Maresca on Christopher Nkunku

Speaking about the player's lack of appearances recently, Maresca said: “We cannot play with Joao, Cole [Palmer], Christo. I’d like to put all of them on the pitch but then you need to defend, and you need the right balance. I don’t have any doubts that if Joao keeps working well, he will find his moment in the Premier League.

“Christo, every time he plays, he scores, and he does well. Also, he was probably our best player in pre-season, no doubt. He was playing then as an attacking midfielder and now we are using him as a nine, which we all know isn’t his position, he’s more a second striker or between the lines.

“But I try to find a solution and balance with all of them but not all of them can be in their position, they have to adapt a bit. It’s for Joao, Christo, Misha [Mudryk, who Maresca was also asked about], they are all players who deserve more chances in the Premier League, but there are also more players who deserve that.”