Chelsea in talks to sell £35m ace as Maresca faces nightmare with 15 stars set for exit

Enzo Maresca could be about to oversee a mass exodus at Chelsea with Conor Gallagher one of many players in line to leave the Blues this summer. The former Crystal Palace loanee has been linked with a move away for some time and is reportedly close to joining another club on a permanent basis.

Atletico Madrid are the interested party and have been progressing in talks with Chelsea over the last few days, according to Fabrizio Romano. It is said that a transfer fee is close to being agreed, with Gallagher set to move in exchange for around £35million with add-ons included.

The 24-year-old is unlikely to be the only player leaving Chelsea this summer, with around 15 others poised to follow him out of west London. It could leave Maresca scrambling to replace them with new additions in a less-than-ideal scenario with the start of the Premier League campaign looming large.

It seems likely that one of Djordje Petrovic and Robert Sanchez will be sold by the Blues if a suitable offer comes in. The same can be said for Marc Cucurella and Ben Chilwell, with Chelsea reportedly looking to cash in on at least one left-back before the end of the window.

Romelu Lukaku looks set to join Napoli if a deal can be agreed, with the Italian giants said to be chasing a permanent move for the 31-year-old. The likes of Trevoh Chalobah, Armando Broja and Tino Anjorin have also been linked with exits but it remains to be seen if all three players will leave.

Several other fringe players could secure loan moves elsewhere, with Basir Humphreys and Lesley Ugochukwu thought to have been made available by the Blues. Andrey Santos, Angelo, Deivid Washington, David Datro Fofana and Cesare Casadei could also leave on loan with feeder club Strasbourg a likely destination.

Noni Madueke, meanwhile, is tied down until the summer of 2030 but has been linked with a surprise move to Newcastle. Nothing is believed to be imminent at this stage but things could accelerate quickly if Anthony Gordon leaves the Magpies to join Liverpool.

In any case, it seems likely that Chelsea will go into the new season with a vastly different squad to the one that finished the previous campaign. Maresca will certainly have his work cut out in a frantic transfer window, which could make or break their hopes of returning to the Premier League’s upper reaches.