Chelsea’s Premier League rivals, Manchester United, are finally poised to complete a long-awaited signing to help them begin to rebuild next season.
The Red Devils have secured the addition of Bryan Mbeumo after months of negotiations with Brentford, while the Blues and other rivals have completed plenty of business early in the window.
Chelsea have addressed their attack with the signings of Joao Pedro, Liam Delap and Jamie Gittens, with the first two already making an impact on their new side at the Club World Cup.
It appears the Blues are not done yet either, with reports stating they are very keen on signing Xavi Simons, who is equally very excited about a move to Stamford Bridge.
Photo by Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty ImagesChelsea sources say they did not try and hijack Bryan Mbeumo deal
Despite this interest, it has been claimed that Chelsea made a late approach to sign Mbeumo as his deal to United stalled.
Links to a new right-winger have not been too prevalent this summer after wonderkid Estevao Willian’s move to Stamford Bridge was made official at the conclusion of the Club World Cup.
However, as shown with the signing of Mykhailo Mudryk from under Arsenal’s noses back in 2023, it is clear that they are not afraid to enter negotiations in the eleventh hour to beat their rivals to a deal.
This does not appear to have been the case when it comes to Mbeumo. According to The Telegraph, Chelsea sources have stated that they never made a bid to their West London foes to try and sign the Cameroon international.
Photo by Arturo Holmes – FIFA/FIFA via Getty ImagesMbeumo has established himself as Chelsea’s nemesis
Since Brentford made their return to the Premier League, the Blues have only beaten their rivals from the capital twice in eight meetings.
One of those came last season thanks to goals from Marc Cucurella and Nicolas Jackson, however they were made to sweat for the result following a late strike from Mbeumo.
The 25-year-old has a very positive record against the Blues, scoring three goals and assisting another three in seven meetings against them.
With a poor record against United in recent seasons, Chelsea supporters will be worried about the combination of taking both on at the same time in the upcoming campaign.