Chelsea are “set to” sign Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano.
It was reported on Friday morning that the Blues were hoping to secure the services of the 24-year-old and a deal has now been hashed out.
Two offers were said to have been put on the table; a loan with an obligation to buy (for £25m), and another with an option to buy (with a higher purchase fee).
Just an hour or so before the 11 pm transfer deadline, United chose to go with the former option, which means Sancho will become a Chelsea player next summer.
Why have Chelsea decided to sign Sancho?
Head coach Enzo Maresca has been extremely influential in the Blues’ pursuit of the England international. The Italian spoke out about the club’s interest in the player a couple of days ago:
“If we can sign a player that can help us, for sure I would. Jadon is not our player. I know him very well. But he is not our player.”
Sterling’s move to Arsenal has helped free up funds
Both Sancho (who is earning £250,000 a week) and Raheem Sterling (£325,000 a week) have high salaries so, if the Blues were not able to get the latter off the club’s books, it would have been tougher to finance their move for the United star.
At the time of writing, it is believed that Sterling will secure a loan switch to Arsenal ahead of the transfer window closing. He was deemed surplus to requirements by Maresca and he would have been consigned to playing for the Under 21s if he had remained at Stamford Bridge.
As it is, Maresca will have an additional option on the flanks. He already has the likes of Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto, Christopher Nkunku, Noni Madueke and Mykhailo Mudryk in his squad.
