Chelsea weigh up move for Crystal Palace’s Marc Guéhi amid injury crisis

Chelsea’s search for defensive reinforcements could see them attempt to re-sign Crystal Palace’s Marc Guéhi. Enzo Maresca wants to strengthen his back four after losing Wesley Fofana and Benoît Badiashile to hamstring injuries and Guéhi, who came through the academy at Stamford Bridge before leaving for Palace in 2021, is emerging as a serious target this month.

The England defender was close to joining Newcastle last summer, only for talks to break down over the north-east club’s reluctance to pay a fee of around £70m. It is unclear if Chelsea, who are also considering recalling Trevoh Chalobah from his loan at Palace, would be willing to go that high but they believe that a big bid would test the Selhurst Park club’s resolve. The 24-year-old has 18 months left on his deal but Palace are in a relegation battle and losing him would be a major blow for their manager, Oliver Glasner.

An obvious hope for Chelsea is that the uncertainty over Guéhi’s contract will cause his value to drop. Maresca, Chelsea’s head coach, hoped to bring in an extra centre-back at the end of the last transfer window, even though Tosin Adarabioyo and Aaron Anselmino were signed last summer.

Chelsea have options at centre-back, even with Fofana potentially out for the season and Badiashile not expected to play this month. Maresca still has Axel Disasi, Adarabioyo and Levi Colwill, who had formed a strong partnership with Fofana before the Frenchman’s latest setback. Alternatives include Josh Acheampong, 18, who made his first league start in the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace, and Anselmino, 19, after the Argentinian teenager’s recall from his loan at Boca Juniors.

Acheampong and Anselmino are both inexperienced and Chelsea have discussed bringing Chalobah back to Stamford Bridge. Chalobah, 25, is a versatile player and has impressed since joining Palace on loan. However, Chalobah is reluctant to head back to his boyhood club after being frozen out last summer. Glasner is keen to keep him at Selhurst Park.

Chelsea have also tracked Sporting Lisbon’s Ousmane Diomande and Benfica’s Tomás Araújo. The number of defenders at Maresca’s disposal has not stopped the Italian looking for upgrades. Disasi, signed from Monaco 18 months ago, is not thought to have a long-term future at Chelsea and there have been suggestions that Badiashile could seek a move.

There is a focus on outgoings this month. The left-back Ben Chilwell is still up for sale and Renato Veiga has been linked with Napoli and Stuttgart. Torino are trying to sign the Italian midfielder Cesare Casadei. The midfielders Carney Chukwuemeka and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall are out of favour and could be granted loan moves.