Chelsea are thinking about making a surprising move to sign a player from a Premier League rival, as Xabi Alonso asks for a new transfer.
Chelsea are planning to go after one of their Premier League rivals in what could be one of the most surprising transfers this summer, according to reports.
The Blues have officially signed four players so far this summer, but all those deals were agreed before the transfer window even opened. They’ve already sold Marc Cucurella to Real Madrid and are close to signing Atalanta’s wing-back Marco Palestra for about £47.4 million.
Palestra, who is 21, made his debut for Italy earlier this year. However, he didn’t play for Atalanta last season because he was loaned out to Cagliari.
New Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso has been given more control over transfers and wants to make a big impact. Sky Sports reporter Kaveh Solhekol says Chelsea is interested in Sunderland’s captain and midfielder Granit Xhaka this summer.
But Sunderland don’t want to sell Xhaka and aren’t accepting offers, according to Sky’s North East reporter Keith Downie. Still, Alonso is very keen to bring the 34-year-old back, having managed him before at Bayer Leverkusen.
Xhaka played a key role in helping Sunderland qualify for European football for the first time in their history. Regis Le Bris’ team will be competing in the Europa League next season. Sunderland secured their place by beating Chelsea 2-1 on the last day of the season, when Chelsea was managed by Calum McFarlane.
Chelsea only earned six points in their last six games under McFarlane, which caused them to miss out on European competition altogether.
Sunderland’s signing of Xhaka last summer was a big deal for the club. Their poor form often seemed to happen when he wasn’t playing.
Right now, Xhaka is with Switzerland at the 2026 World Cup. His team topped their group with two wins and six points from three matches. He even scored a penalty in stoppage time during a 4-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Switzerland will now face one of the third-place teams in the next round, but it’s not yet clear who that will be.
Sunderland fans might feel better after hearing Xhaka’s words earlier this summer about his future. Speaking in June, he said he wasn’t thinking about leaving the Stadium of Light.
He told Swiss media outlet Blick: “Moving from Leverkusen to Sunderland wasn’t a snap decision. I had many talks with the owner, sporting director, and manager before I signed.
“The city feels like home to me, like Basel, where I grew up. You perform your best when you feel comfortable. For me, the most important thing is that my family is happy, and we are happy in Sunderland.
“I’m not thinking about a transfer. I’m really glad to have a summer without any speculation about my future. That’s rare for me. It helps me focus on the World Cup.”