Chelsea face losing ANOTHER academy graduate as £45m transfer is agreed: report

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Chelsea are willing to let the fifth player to come through their academy go this summer, with Financial Fair Play to consider

Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino looks on during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Chelsea FC at London Stadium on August 20, 2023 in London, England.
(Image credit: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

Chelsea continue to do business in the transfer market this summer, but their fifth academy graduate could be set to leave the club ahead of the deadline on Friday night. 

Spending under owner Todd Boehly could be set to reach £1bn in just three transfer windows, with Sky Sports reporting that Cole Palmer is due to have his medical on Thursday ahead of a £45m transfer to the Blues from Manchester City. 

That could signal the end of another player's career at the club, though, with Chelsea willing to listen to offers from Premier League rivals. 

VIDEO: Why Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez will help Chelsea challenge for the Premier League title

According to The Telegraph, Tottenham Hotspur are considering making a late move for Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, with the Blues willing to listen to offers for around £50m ahead of the 11pm deadline on Friday.

Mason Mount, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Lewis Hall have all been sold this summer, with the quartet all deemed surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge despite coming through the youth academy as young players.

Conor Gallagher could be set to join them in leaving their boyhood clubs this window, with the 23-year-old having been heavily linked with Tottenham for the majority of the summer 2023 window. 

Chelsea's English midfielder #23 Conor Gallagher reacts during the English League Cup football match between Chelsea and AFC Wimbledon at Stamford Bridge, in London on August 30, 2023. (Photo by Daniel LEAL / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by DANIEL LEAL/AFP via Getty Images)

Gallagher could be set to leave before the deadline (Image credit: Getty Images)

This comes despite Gallagher having started all three opening games of the Premier League season under new manager Mauricio Pochettino, with the England international even captaining the side on Wednesday night in their Carabao Cup victory over AFC Wimbledon. 

The midfield arrivals of Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and Lesley Ugochukwu this month have all threatened Gallagher's status within the squad, joining Enzo Fernandez in the team, and Chelsea are now willing to let him leave the club he joined in 2008 as an eight-year-old. 

Motivated by academy products counting as pure profit within the parameters of financial fair play regulations, Chelsea have been selling their academy graduates in order to fund their hedonistic spending over the course of the last year. Gallagher could be the latest victim of that business model. 

Moises Caicedo of Chelsea runs during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Luton Town at Stamford Bridge on August 25, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Nigel French/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)

Caicedo has joined, putting Gallagher's place in the squad at risk (Image credit: Getty Images)

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Ryan Dabbs
Ryan Dabbs
Staff writer

Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.