Chelsea make contact to land “pure diamond” as Nkunku upgrade

Chelsea have endured a tough spell in recent weeks, with Enzo Maresca seeing his side stutter after such an impressive first few months of the Premier League campaign.

The Blues were sitting second at one point, just a couple of points off leaders Liverpool, but after a run of just one win in their last six league matches, they’ve dropped to fifth, ten points off Arne Slot’s side who have a game in hand.

However, the Italian and his players still sit in a solid position to secure a top four spot come the end of the season, but its vital that the slump in form is corrected as soon as possible to prevent any more dropped points.

The opening of the January transfer window has allowed the boss to have another opportunity to either make new additions or offload players who he no longer thinks are of use to the first team squad.

Unsurprisingly, numerous names have been mentioned over a move to Stamford Bridge, with another name thrown into the mix going into the final few weeks of the market.

Chelsea in talks to land attacking star

According to journalist Christian Falk, Chelsea have held talks with Borussia Dortmund over a potential deal to land forward Karim Adeyemi, ahead of a potential switch at the end of the season.

However, the Blues aren’t alone in their pursuit with Italian side Napoli also interested in a move for the German with star man Khvicha Kvaratskhelia set to join PSG in the coming days.

It’s not the first time Maresca’s side have been interested in a move for the 22-year-old, with the summer window also seeing huge rumours over a deal for the youngster.

However, he would be a superb addition for the Blues – even if they do have to wait until the summer for him to arrive – adding further quality to the front line, with his tally of eight combined goal contributions in just 11 matches this season.

Such a move could spell the end for one player who’s found game time extremely hard to come by since his move to West London a couple of years ago.

Why Adeyemi would be an upgrade on Nkunku

In recent days, Chelsea have been touted with a move to land Bayern Munich youngster Mathys Tel this month, but no deal has yet to be completed.

The 19-year-old is a young talent, undoubtedly set to have a massive future in the game, but as of yet, he’s been unable to make an instant impact this campaign, failing to register a single goal or assist during 2024/25.

Any move for the young French star would potentially see current first team member Christopher Nkunku move in the other direction to join the Bundesliga giants.

The 27-year-old joined the club in a £52m deal from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2023, but missed the majority of his debut campaign with a knee injury – restricting him to just 14 appearances in the process.

However, he’s made 28 appearances, scoring 13 times throughout his second season, but has largely been restricted to minutes off the bench, starting just three times.

As a result, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him move back to Germany this month, with Adeyemi potentially proving to be an upgrade on the PSG academy graduate, should he make the switch at some point in 2025.

Adeyemi, who’s been dubbed a “pure diamond” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has registered more league contributions than Nkunku, while also posing a higher shot on target rate – showcasing his clinical edge in attacking areas.

The German is also very versatile, more than capable of featuring off either wing, as demonstrated by his higher tally of successful take-ons and overall better take-on success rate.

It’s unclear how much any potential deal for the Dortmund ace would cost the club, but it’s evident that he does possess a lot of qualities that would benefit Maresca’s side moving forward.

As for Nkunku, it’s a shame that he’s been unable to cement his place in the starting XI, with a move potentially the right call to allow him to develop – especially when they have an option such as Adeyemi, who would be better than the player who’s set to leave.