Chelsea have reportedly received a huge boost in their attempts to sign Borussia Dortmund attacker Karim Adeyemi, whose talks with Juventus have collapsed.
The 22-year-old burst onto the scene with Austrian giants Red Bull Salzburg, famed for their development of young players, during a four-year stint from 2018 to 2022.
Adeyemi's form in Austria earned him a marquee £25.6m move to Dortmund in the summer of 2022, although he is yet to truly set the Bundesliga alight, managing 14 goals and eight assists in 66 games in all competitions.
The winger also missed out on a place in Germany's Euro 2024 squad, but he was a frequent starter during Dortmund's run to the Champions League final, making the first XI in every game from the quarter-finals and beyond.
Dortmund tied Adeyemi down to a five-year contract upon his arrival, meaning that his terms are not due to expire until the summer of 2027, but clubs are already lining up to prise him away from the Westfalenstadion.
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Adeyemi Juventus talks 'collapse' amid Chelsea interest
Both Chelsea and Juventus are rumoured to have taken a liking to Adeyemi, and the Italian giants were understood to have opened discussions over the signing of the 22-year-old a few weeks ago.
The Old Lady are searching for a successor to Federico Chiesa, who is out of contract in the summer of 2025 and is not planning on signing an extension, meaning that Juve are working to find a buyer this summer.
However, according to Fabrizio Romano - via football.london - negotiations between Adeyemi and Juventus have now collapsed, leaving Chelsea with no competition in their efforts to sign the German.
Dortmund would supposedly be receptive to bids of around €30m (£25.6m) for the 22-year-old, which Chelsea - in spite of their already significant summer outlay - would have no problem meeting.
Personal terms with Adeyemi should not pose a problem either, as the Blues would be expected to offer the winger a lengthy deal of between five and seven years to make the move to Stamford Bridge.
Do Chelsea really need Adeyemi?
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Chelsea have already been on the receiving end of Adeyemi's attacking threat once before, as the attacker scored the only goal in Dortmund's Champions League last-16 first-leg win over the Blues in the 2022-23 season.
Despite his slightly underwhelming numbers in Germany so far, there is no denying that Adeyemi is a young player with bags of potential, meaning he hits the Todd Boehly transfer brief to a tee.
However, more wide players is surely the last area that Chelsea should be focussing on right now, as Raheem Sterling, Noni Madueke, Mykhaylo Mudryk and Cole Palmer are already in Maresca's ranks.
A spot could open up for Adeyemi if Newcastle United-linked Madueke departs, but the Blues' glaring issue up front still remains; their priority should surely still be a seasoned and prolific centre-forward.
A deal to sign Napoli's Victor Osimhen is not thought to be completely dead in the water, but his agent has rubbished claims of a potential swap deal involving Romelu Lukaku.
Ben Knapton
