Chelsea want to sign amazing £115m Nkunku replacement

Over the summer of 2023, Todd Boehly’s spending at Chelsea again was rather sizeable, splashing out a whopping £386.7m on 12 permanent signings.

In order to fund this, the Blues also made back around £231.8m in sales, with 14 players leaving the club on permanent transfers, whilst 16 left the club on loan.

The biggest deal of that window was acquiring a midfield partner for Enzo Fernández, signing Moises Caicedo from Brighton, for a fee of around £115m. The 23-year-old midfielder signed an eight-year deal with the club and has already made 61 appearances, scoring two goals and, providing six assists.

Christopher Nkunku also joined from RB Leipzig for a fee of around £52m, agreeing a deal prior to his arrival on July 1st, 2023.

But injuries affected the Frenchman’s first season at the club, as he has only been able to make 31 appearances for the Blues since joining.

Christopher Nkunku’s time at Chelsea

Nkunku’s first season at the club only saw 14 appearances, having suffered a knee injury, a hamstring injury, and a hip injury, really struggling to regain and sustain fitness. In those 14 games, Nkunku managed three goals across just 516 minutes on the pitch.

However, to start this term, despite being the understudy to Nicolas Jackson so far, the 26-year-old has made 17 appearances in all competitions, scoring ten goals and supplying one assist, already more than he managed in the entirety of 2023/24.

Despite his good goal tally this time around, the former Leipzig man is far more of a number ten, someone who likes to play off of the striker, be involved in all phases of play, and arrive in the box late, rather than being the out-and-out number nine, looking to occupy the box at all times.

This could see Nkunku force a move, as he looks for more game time in his natural position, with Manchester United reportedly interested in the Frenchman. Therefore, Chelsea could move for a new striker alongside Jackson, and links are beginning to emerge for a current Premier League star striker.

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Chelsea’s big-money Nkunku replacement

Newcastle striker Alexander Isak, who was dubbed “The New Zlatan” by scout Jacek Kulig, is reportedly going to be available in 2025, chiefly if the Magpies fail to qualify for the Champions League, according to Graeme Bailey.

This could see the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea (noted as long-term admirers) and Liverpool all chase up their interest in the striker.

Since joining Newcastle in 2022, Isak has been a phenomenal asset to the Toon, making 78 appearances, in which he’s scored as many as 40 goals. So, how does the Swede compare with what Maresca already has at his disposal?

Both Isak and Jackson do have similar profiles, looking to help their teams in the build-up, progress play, link the ball, run the channels and then arrive in the box.

Winning more aerial duels and, of course, scoring more regularly, Isak would offer a greater box threat. His 6 foot 4 frame is frightening and would give Chelsea something they severely lack currently; height.

Considering their profiles are similar and the fact he’s been priced at a seismic £115m, perhaps developing the rawer Jackson would save them money but the Sweden international is a proven hit now in the Premier League and is waiting for his big money money.

Jackson is there already but Isak would be an amazing pickup for any Premier League top side, guaranteeing goals, and overall quality in all phases of play.

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