Chelsea complete £12m Casadei signing while Tuchel is handed one-match ban
Chelsea have completed the signing of Cesare Casadei from Internazionale for £12m plus £4m in add-ons.
The 19-year-old Italian midfielder has signed a six-year deal. The deal is another indication of Chelsea’s new policy of targeting rising talent from other clubs. They have already signed Gabriel Slonina, Carney Chukwuemeka, Zak Sturge, Eddie Beach and Omari Hutchinson this summer.
It is unclear if Casadei will be sent out on loan. There is a chance that he will be given an opportunity to compete for a place in the first-team squad, but the likelihood is that the midfielder is one for the future. The experienced duo of N’Golo Kanté and Jorginho are both out of contract next summer.
Chelsea’s new owners have spent heavily this summer and are still trying to bring in more signings. They have received indications that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is open to moving back to England, but they are yet to agree a few with Barcelona for the former Arsenal striker.
Thomas Tuchel is keen to add more firepower to his side and knows Aubameyang well. Barça are believed to be holding out for a €30m for the Gabonese forward.
Chelsea are also targeting the Everton winger Anthony Gordon and the
Leicester centre-back Wesley Fofana. They are expected to shift to other defensive targets if Leicester refuse to sell Fofana. Chelsea are prepared to let the 23-year-old centre-back Trevoh Chalobah leave on loan.
However, they are unsure about loaning Christian Pulisic to Manchester United, who are interested in a deal for the USA winger. Chelsea are willing to listen to offers for Pulisic, who is also a target for Newcastle, Atletico Madrid and Juventus, but their preference would be to sell him to United.
There was bad news for Tuchel on Friday, with the Football Association giving him a one-match touchline ban for his fracas with Antonio Conte at the end of Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Tottenham last Sunday. Both managers were fined £15,000. Tuchel will be on the touchline for Sunday’s game at Leeds, as the ban has been suspended pending the release of the full written reasons.
West Ham have reopened talks with Chelsea over a deal for the Italy leftback Emerson Palmieri. The move originally stalled over the defender’s wage demands. West Ham have now revived their interest in Emerson, but they have not agreed a fee with Chelsea.