Busy Chelsea Confirm Third Deal, Eye Gittens & Maignan

Chelsea have confirmed the signing of Mamadou Sarr from RC Strasbourg. The defender agreed to join the club in January and moves from the BlueCo-owned Ligue 1 outfit.

Sarr has agreed an eight-year contract and will not turn 20 until late August. The French youth international joins Liam Delap and Dario Essugo as the third deal of the summer for Chelsea with more expected to follow.

With under two days until the mini summer transfer window closes, Chelsea are also looking to complete deals for Jamie Gittens and Mike Maignan. If the club act quickly, both players could feature at the Club World Cup later this month.

Negotiations with Borussia Dortmund and Milan continue this week in a bid to bolster Enzo Maresca’s squad ahead of travelling out to America. Sarr is now set to be part of the expanded group which can have a role in USA.

He played 29 times for Strasbourg last season under Liam Rosenior. The Alsace-based side enjoyed a great season, finishing seventh and eventually securing a Conference League spot.

Things could have been even better for Sarr, Strasbourg, Rosenior, and BlueCo, but they lost the last two matches to drop out of the Champions League places. Sarr had been a mainstay at the heart of defence (which was often a back three), and started 27 out of 34 league games.

Chelsea star has three games to change Enzo Maresca transfer plans as £85m decision set to be made.

Chelsea moved to put a deal in place with their sister club for Sarr over the winter. He is thought to have cost around £14million having moved from Lyon in August 2024.

Sarr is a product of the Lyon academy after leaving Lens as a junior in 2018. He has played for France at Under-17 through to Under-20 level.

Much like with Sarr, Chelsea had already completed the formalities for Essugo’s transfer long before an announcement came last week. He joins from Sporting CP (via a loan at Las Palmas last season) for £18.5million. Essugo is expected to be part of Maresca’s senior team.

Sarr, on the other hand, could yet depart on loan in 2025/26. Chelsea are exploring their options at the back with Marc Guehi and Jorrel Hato among the players they are interested in.

It is unlikely that another defender arrives before the Club World Cup but all parties are working to secure Gittens and Maignan by that stage. Chelsea are also keen on Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike but his £84.5million price tag is continuing to be a stumbling block.

Chelsea can name up to 50 players in a provisional Club World Cup squad. That is then reduced to a maximum of 35 for the group stage. More players can be added ahead of the knockout stage to accommodate for newly completed registrations after the transfer window opens again on June 16.

Football.london