Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca given £50m headache as Todd Boehly risks being left red-faced

Chelsea may be about to miss a golden opportunity to boost Enzo Maresca’s transfer budget, leaving Todd Boehly with a dilemma to solve. The Blues are widely expected to be active in the summer market as Maresca looks to reshape his squad in preparation for the new Premier League season.

It seems Chelsea will also be looking to sell players over the coming weeks, with Conor Gallagher thought to be among those who could leave Stamford Bridge. The England midfielder has been linked with a potential move to Aston Villa while Tottenham are said to be weighing up a swoop of their own.

According to TEAMtalk, Chelsea value Gallagher at around £50million with any proceeds from his sale representing pure profit given his status as an academy graduate. However, the report adds that Gallagher is unwilling to leave, which could pose an issue for the Blues this summer.

Gallagher is only tied down until the end of next season, meaning he is about to enter the final 12 months of his existing deal. He could walk away from Chelsea on a free transfer in 2025 if he refuses to leave this summer, potentially denying them a welcome boost to their transfer budget.

It means that Chelsea are facing the prospect of losing a sellable asset in Gallagher without receiving any money in exchange for his signature. This would be less than ideal for the Blues, who could do with the extra funds to stave off the threat of breaching Premier League financial regulations.

Any movement on Gallagher’s future will need to wait until after the Euros following his inclusion in Gareth Southgate’s final squad. However, with the 24-year-old apparently happy to stay at Chelsea for another season, it will be up to Aston Villa or Tottenham to convince him that his interests are better served elsewhere.

It has already been reported that Chelsea do not view Gallagher as part of their long-term plans due to concerns he will not suit Maresca’s preferred style of play. The former Leicester City boss is known to favour a possession-based system comparable to Pep Guardiola’s approach at Manchester City.

This suggests that Gallagher moving on this summer would make sense for all parties, but player power is so often a deciding factor and it seems he will be staying put unless he changes his mind on leaving his boyhood club.