Chelsea could be about to make yet another summer signing before Friday’s transfer deadline.
The Blues have already brought in ten new players since Enzo Maresca arrived and now have a bloated first-team squad of well over 30 players.
But with defenders Trevoh Chalobah and Axel Disasi likely to exit Stamford Bridge, the Blues have now enquired over the availability of Benfica centre-back Tomas Araujo.
The Portuguese 22-year-old has been on the radar of the club’s sporting directors and a deal could still be possible before the window shuts at 11pm.
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Although reports suggest Chelsea’s initial approach has been dismissed by Benfica, the centre-back has a contract release clause of £85million.
Therefore, if Chelsea sold both Chalobah and Disasi, with Premier League rivals Crystal Palace and Newcastle showing interest, they could make a late swoop for Araujo by stumping up the big cash.
Coincidentally, Palace have also shown an interest in bringing Araujo to the Premier League but had a bid in the region of £25million rejected by the Lisbon club.
The Blues may have to fend off competition from PSG who are also interested in the Benfica defender. But the French giants may need centre-back Milan Skriniar to leave Paris first.
Skriniar has been strongly linked with a switch to Roma which, if completed, could force PSG’s hand and see them make a move for Araujo.
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, Araujo doesn’t yet have the pedigree to justify breaking his release clause. To spend £85million on a player not certain of starting matches would potentially be a huge waste of money, even by Chelsea in 2024 standards.
Maresca’s side have conceded six goals in their four competitive games so far this season, so defence is an area to improve. But would Araujo offer a major upgrade on Levi Colwill, Wesley Fofana, Tosin Adarabioyo or Benoit Badiashile - centre-backs who are all likely to be at Stamford Bridge - following deadline day?
At this stage the transfer doesn’t make enough sense to justify spending such a large amount. But that hasn’t stopped Chelsea over the last two years.
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