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Chelsea really want to sign Man City youngster in the summer who wowed Pep Guardiola from day one

Srinivas Sadhanand

Thu 6 February 2025 14:15, UK

One of the biggest improvements Chelsea have made this season is in the middle of the park, with Cole Palmer and Moises Caicedo ensuring that their midfield is one of the very best in the Premier League.

During the previous campaign, while Palmer was sublime, Caicedo was still getting to grips with life at Stamford Bridge but the latter has become consistently brilliant as well nowadays.

But for Enzo Maresca to lead Chelsea to either lifting the Premier League or the Champions League eventually, he will demand improvements in all areas of the pitch.

Chelsea, who are currently fourth in the league are seemingly always open to rejigging their squad in any case by taking brave decisions in the transfer market.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
4	ChelseaChelsea	24	12	7	5	47	31	16	43

A prime example of the Blues’ fearless approach in terms of their recruitment was when they supposedly tried to sign Nico O’Reilly by making an enquiry about the 19-year-old’s availability a few days ago.

Manchester City refused to sell O’Reilly to Chelsea as they are fearful of letting go of young players who could turn out to become top-drawer players such as in Palmer’s well-documented case.

Chelsea still want to sign Nico O’Reilly in the summer

The Englishman has become a part of City’s first-team this season after standing out during their pre-season tour of the United States.

Pep Guardiola admitted he was instantly impressed by O’Reilly when he saw him in training, revealing via BeanymanSports in July: “He came back [from injury] in the middle of last season and trained with us and I said, ‘Wow, this guy has good things.’ Normally, all the academy players are [short like] Rico Lewis, Oscar Bobb, at least we have a guy like this [tall].”

This campaign, Guardiola has given O’Reilly minutes in defensive midfield and most notably, as a left-back in Manchester City’s 8-0 win against Salford City.

It seems like the Catalan tactician deems the Manchester City academy graduate to be a player with a high ceiling.

But worryingly for the Sky Blues, the have revealed that Chelsea remain interested in signing O’Reilly in the summer.

Dario Essugo is another young midfielder who the West London side are keen on sealing a deal for.

Chelsea do not need to sign Nico O’Reilly

Ultimately, Chelsea would be taking a massive risk by signing O’Reilly.

There is no questioning that the highly-rated technician is not only a brilliant athlete but comfortable in possession, has an eye for goal and is versatile.

But O’Reilly is far too experienced at the top level and as a natural talent, Palmer looked far more exciting and ready for regular first-team football.

With Chelsea already having more established midfielders on their books, they should perhaps let O’Reilly develop as he has only made four appearances at the senior level so far.