Chelsea in talks to sign “magic” £120m star

Will Chelsea make any more signings before the Club World Cup transfer window closes on 10 June?

On Wednesday, the Blues unveiled Liam Delap, who has arrived from Ipswich Town, after Chelsea activated his £30m release clause.

Now, the West London side have until Tuesday to make any more new signings if they’re to feature at the newly revamped Club World Cup, with the Blues’ tournament opener against Los Angeles FC taking place in Atlanta on Monday 16 June.

So, by the time that fixture comes around at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, could the Chelsea supporters in attendance have another big-money signing to admire?

Chelsea looking to sign Sancho replacement

Earlier this week, it was confirmed that Chelsea will not sign Jadon Sancho from Manchester United permanently, choosing to, as outlined by Nizaar Kinsella of BBC Sport, pay a £5m penalty fee, rather than exercising a £25m obligation to buy.

Sancho scored just five goals in 42 appearances for the Blues this season, most memorably bagging a stunning curler against Real Betis in the recent Conference League Final in Wrocław.

The England international took to Instagram to thank his Chelsea “teammates, staff and the fans”, going to say that he was “grateful for the experience” so, while his own personal future is now uncertain, the Blues are searching for an upgrade.

Well, according to a report by Kaveh Solhekol for Sky Sports, Chelsea have been ‘offered the chance to sign’ Mohammed Kudus, who they claim has an £85m release clause in his contract at West Ham United.

It’s reported that Chelsea have not said ‘no’ and are weighing up whether to add him to their list of options this summer. A further report from BBC Sport notes that discussions between the Hammers and Chelsea have already taken place.

The winger currently has an £85m release clause for Premier League clubs and a £120m exit clause for Saudi clubs which could complicate matters.

The Ghanaian arrived in East London from Ajax for £38m two summers ago, making 80 appearances for the Hammers to date, scoring 19 goals and registering 13 assists.

So, with the Blues on the lookout for a winger, could a move across the capital be on the cards for Kudus?

Why Mohammed Kudus is a Jadon Sancho upgrade

Kudus’ performances at West Ham have earnt widespread praise, with teammate Aaron Cresswell labeling him a “top talent”, adding that he’s “so strong, so quick and so sharp”, while George Addo Jr of BBC Sport is in awe of his “magic feet”.

Meantime, Patrick Boyland of the Athletic outlines how Kudus is ‘versatile’, capable of playing on either flank or centrally, describing him as a ‘prolific and effective dribbler’.

Adam Scully of Total Football Analysis agrees with this, stating that, ‘undoubtedly’, the Ghanaian’s best attribute is his ‘excellent’ dribbling ability, while Ben Mattinson of Breaking the Lines believes he has ‘world-class potential’.

On that evidence, he’d certainly be a great replacement for Sancho, another versatile forward player. The following statistics certainly support these assertions too.

Given how dismal West Ham were throughout this season, winning just 11 matches and finishing 15th, it is certainly very impressive that Kudus managed to attempt the most take-ons, second only to Jérémy Doku for successful take-ons too.

Nevertheless, the question still remains: would he be an upgrade on Sancho?

Kudus vs Sancho 24/25 PL comparison
Statistics	Kudus	Sancho
Appearances	32	31
Minutes	2,603	1,765
Goals	5	3
Assists	3	5
Note: All statistics below are on a per-90 basis.
Shots	2.61	1.22
Shot-creating actions	3.72	3.57
Attempted take-ons	7.22	4.95
Successful take-ons	3.19	2.30
Progressive carries	3.40	5.20
Touches	52.2	53.7
Statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt, FBref.com and Squawka

As the table outlines, Kudus’ statistics are broadly more impressive than those of Sancho, despite the fact the Ghanian endured an underwhelming season in a very uninspiring West Ham side.

While not quite on the same level for progressive carries, more of his take-ons are actually successful and he’s a constant threat, taking more shots.

As already established, Kudus is a top-class dribbler, so now he just needs the output in front of goal to match, and a move to a better team could be exactly what he needs to take his game to the next level.