Chelsea transfer exchange deal now considered unlikely

Chelsea are reportedly now looking unlikely to do a swap deal with Aston Villa for Jhon Duran and Conor Gallagher this summer.

The Blues seemingly remain open to selling Gallagher for around £50million this summer, according to The Athletic, with the England international just a year away from the end of his contract, meaning the club would risk losing him on a free next summer if they don’t manage to sell him now.

Gallagher had been linked with Villa but the report now suggests that exchange is not likely to happen, so it will be interesting to see if anyone else comes in for the 24-year-old in the next few weeks.

Atletico Madrid have also been linked as possible suitors for Gallagher by Spanish outlet Relevo, so that could be an interesting one to watch, with a growing number of English players now doing very well with moves abroad.

Jude Bellingham has been the biggest success story in that respect, having made his name at Borussia Dortmund before joining Real Madrid last summer, while Harry Kane is starring at Bayern Munich and others like Fikayo Tomori, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Tammy Abraham have done well in Serie A.

Gallagher transfer: Should Chelsea keep or sell?

With Gallagher, however, there’s surely a strong case for Chelsea doing whatever they can to keep him after his impressive form last season.

The former Crystal Palace loanee ended up being one of the most consistent and reliable performers for the west London giants, and it could prove hard to replace his influence and work rate in the middle of the park.

While it might be tempting to make ‘pure profit’ from the fact that Gallagher is a homegrown player, Chelsea surely also need to think about his quality and leadership before allowing him to go and strengthen another team.