Chelsea fans will no doubt remember recent summers, when various young academy-bred talent are linked with moves away. Each summer, names such as Callum Hudson-Odoi are linked with moves away from Stamford Bridge. In previous years, this made sense; a lack of opportunity for academy talent made it tough to give them realistic promises of gametime. However, when Hudson-Odoi was linked with a move to FC Bayern, Chelsea stood firm: this was one of their own they would not lose regardless of the fee.
Given his skrill level, it was easy to see why a talented Hudson-Odoi were so keen to hold on. With the player in a sticky position given the formation employed by Thomas Tuchel, though, an exit this summer feels more likely than ever. And, according to reports in France, the Blues might look to use Bayern’s previous interest to their advantage. Chelsea are known to be keen admirers of Kingsley Coman, who has made clear he would like to move on from FC Bayer in the future given contract negotiations are at a standstill.
However, there has been a significant challenge in getting the deal to move forward with Bayern keen to keep Coman for now. Chelsea, then, hope that offering Hudson-Odoi as a part of the deal gives Bayern both finance to use for other deals and a replacement for Coman in the form of a player they covet.
While many in Germany have rated the deal as unlikely, reports in France and those closer to Coman himself believe it could be more likely than some believe.
Why is Kingsley Coman set to leave the Bundesliga?
Contract negotiations have struggled, with Coman – who earns around €9m per year – looking to double his salary to that of Leroy Sane. Currently, he earns around €9m at present, and Chelsea would be more than happy to match any salary needs to land a long-term target.
With the Bavarian giants losing a sum of the region of €150m due to the COVID-19 pandemic, acquiring funds plus a young talent on a fraction of the wages would make sense for all involved. It would also give Chelsea the marquee forward they wish to sign this summer, giving previous marquee buy Timo Werner a new player to link with as part of either a front three or a duo.
At the moment, then, it appears likely that Coman will move on. Bayern have endured tough times in recent years when trying to sign key talent to new deals, with the reality of wages outside of Germany making it hard for them to compete. Fresh from winning the UEFA Champions League, though, the Blues are happy to spend big this summer and could see Coman as their ideal target this summer.
With many academy talent clearing the decks and moving on this summer, it is expected that Hudson-Odoi will do the same. Expect, then, a pretty considerable change to arrive at Chelsea this summer, especially if a deal can be done for Coman.
