Chelsea are reportedly one of the clubs that are interested in Willian Jose and are exploring the possibility of landing the Real Sociedad striker.
Spanish publication Marca are speculating that Chelsea might move for Real Sociedad star Willian Jose. The English transfer window slams shut on Thursday. The Blues are exploring the possibility of signing the Brazilian striker to beef up their attack.
Willian Jose started his journey at Brazilian side Barueri before moving to Uruguay and joining Maldonado. The striker though, has been sent on loans to various clubs since joining Maldonado, having plied his trade for Brazilian giants Santos, Sao Paulo and Gremio.
Come 2014, the striker joined Real Madrid Castilla for a short loan spell. But, the move opened up doors to Europe and the next two seasons saw Willian Jose spending his time in Spain, at Real Zaragoza and Las Palmas respectively. Real Sociedad, though, were the team to facilitate the striker’s permanent move to Europe, signing him in the summer of 2016.
And the La Liga side will not have been disappointed by Jose’s performances over the two seasons. Boasting a return of 34 goals in 74 games, the 26-year-old has emerged as one of the natural goalscorers in La Liga. What stood out further was his record in Europa League, with the striker scoring 5 times in 6 games.
In the last few hours, Chelsea have contacted Nick Arciri, the representative of Real Sociedad and Brazilian striker Willian Jose. The player has a €65m release clause. Borussia Dortmund and Valencia are also interested in the player. #CFC pic.twitter.com/930CqsEyyU
— MSCFC? (@SarrifutbolCFC) August 4, 2018
Willian Jose is now drawing attention from other clubs, with Premier League taking a keen interest in the striker. Fulham and Newcastle have both tabled offers that have been swiftly rejected, with Willian Jose favouring a stay at Real Sociedad over a move to either club.
But, interest from Chelsea could sway the 26-year-old. Chelsea have Olivier Giroud and Alvaro Morata as the options to head their attack. While Alvaro Morata has looked better and is set to lead the line for Chelsea, Olivier Giroud has been linked with a move away, thus escalating the need to sign a striker.
Valencia are also one of the clubs interested in the player. The interest stems from the fact that their star striker Rodrigo is being linked to the likes of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. Should Rodrigo leave, Willian Jose would be an ideal replacement, especially with the player well accustomed to the level of football being played in La Liga.
Willian Jose reportedly has a release clause of €65 million embedded in his Real Sociedad contract. Should Chelsea come in with an offer close to the aforementioned mark, we could see Real Sociedad be tempted to cash in on the 26-year-old in order to use the inflow to reinvest in the squad.
For now, Chelsea seem to be weighing their options ahead of the upcoming transfer deadline. This looks like a deal that could be one of the surprise moves on deadline day, should the Blues become desperate to add a striker to their squad.
