Joao Felix has agreed personal terms with Chelsea with the Blues and Atletico Madrid nearing an agreement over the forward and Conor Gallagher.
Gallagher was set to complete his move to the La Liga giants but that deal was halted when Chelsea’s attempts to sign Samu Omorodion from Atletico fell through.
In response, the Premier League side pivoted towards a deal for Felix, who spent half a season on loan in west London in 2023. The situation has left Gallagher in limbo, returning from Spain this week and training with Chelsea’s Under-21s until his future is resolved.
More talks between Chelsea and Atletico are expected this weekend as they to find a way to break the impasse, The Telegraph report.
Atletico need to raise cash to get the Gallagher deal over the line with Felix’s exit the key. Chelsea are still to agree a fee for the Portugal international but the move appears to be one step closer with Fabrizio Romano reporting Felix has agreed personal terms with the Blues.
The report adds suggestions Atletico are demanding €60million (£51m) for the 24-year-old are not accurate.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca refused to discuss the deal at a press conference on Friday, also staying silent on the club’s pursuit of Victor Osimhen. The Nigeria international is expected to leave Napoli before the end of the month with Maresca’s side leading the race.
‘The only I can say is they are not our players so it’s not correct to talk about a Napoli player or Atletico Madrid player,’ Maresca said.
‘The club knows exactly what I think in terms of what we need and hopefully before we finish the transfer window, we can bring in some players.’
Gallagher meanwhile will not be considered for selection in Chelsea’s opening game of the season against Manchester City on Sunday, banished to the Under-21s with fellow exiles Trevoh Chalobah and Romelu Lukaku.
‘Conor is back and training a little bit apart. He is doing some medical tests and some training and he won’t be involved for this game,’ Maresca said.
‘Also because in this moment, he is trying to find the solution with the club so we’ll see what happens.
‘I said many times since we started, unfortunately these kinds of things happen every summer… all the clubs have some problems because players that want to leave, clubs want players to leave.
‘But in the end, it finishes with all of them happy so hopefully for Conor, his situation ends with everyone happy.’
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