Former Tottenham goalkeeper and England goalkeeper Paul Robinson believes Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher could be on his way out of Stamford Bridge in the January window amid Spurs interest.
As the January transfer window approaches, more and more outlets are touting Gallagher for a possible switch away from Stamford Bridge after he came close to joining Tottenham on the final day of the summer window. In spite of his apparent importance to Pochettino’s rebuild, it’s beginning to feel likely that the 23-year-old may be playing his football elsewhere in 2024.
Former Tottenham shot-stopper Paul Robinson holds similar views and thinks the writing is on the wall for Gallagher, who could be sacrificed in an effort to raise funds for Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino to invest elsewhere in the squad.
Robinson told Football Insider: “I’ve heard about Conor Gallagher potentially going and moving on, who’s played most of the games this season.
“So if they’re potentially looking to move players like that on, then the writing’s obviously on the wall for him.”
If Gallagher’s future at Chelsea was to be decided purely on his performances, there would be no discussion about him being prepared for the chop next month. He has been one of Chelsea’s most consistent performers this season, having started all but one of the 20 games he’s been available for.
A homegrown player, a regular England international, and deemed important enough by the Blues’ boss Pochettino to don the captain’s armband in recent weeks. However, the Pensioners’ will let him go if a big bid arrives on the table in January.
He only has 18 months left on his contract, so Chelsea are expecting to sell him at some stage in 2024, unless he pens a new deal, and will be happy to do so in January as they have other key priorities, both in terms of their other needs on the pitch and their off-field issues.
Chelsea have spent more than £1 billion in the past three transfer windows since Todd Boehly acquired the club and are at risk of breaching the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules. With Pochettino demanding to sign a new out-and-out No. 9, they may have to sell to buy in January.
Given that Gallagher is an academy product, the fee Chelsea will get from his sale would go down as pure profit on the books, which could be a significant gain when it comes to adhering to financial fair play guidelines.
Tottenham’s interest in the Chelsea playmaker has not dampened, and they could make another move for him, although they may also have to offload players to make room, with Pierre-Emile Hojberg a possible outgoing and Juventus and Napoli showing keen interest in taking him to Serie A.
