Tim Sherwood believes Chelsea would be silly not to rival Liverpool for the signing of Marc Guehi after the long-term injury suffered by Levi Colwill.
Colwill was expected to be a key player again for Enzo Maresca’s side but will now miss the majority of the season with an ACL injury.
While Chelsea had already brought in Jarrel Hato from Ajax prior to Colwill’s injury, Maresca has openly admitted that he would now like to see the club dip back into the market for more defensive cover.
‘We are trying to find a solution internally, but the club know exactly what I think and we’ll see what happens,’ the Chelsea boss said last week.
‘I think we need a central defender. We are looking for an internal solution but as I said, the club know exactly what I think.
Your ultimate guide to the football season
Metro’s new weekly football newsletter: In The Mixer. Exclusive analysis, FPL tips and transfer talk sent straight to your inbox every Friday – sign up, it’s an open goal.
‘We have a fantastic squad. We are happy with the squad. we are, no doubt. But we said many times that when the transfer window is open, anything can happen.’
Despite Maresca’s wishes, reports suggest that Chelsea will not sanction the purchasing of another centre-back, with Josh Acheampong one of several players viewed as a capable deputy for the time being.
But former Tottenham manager Sherwood believes Chelsea should reconsider their stance and pursue a deal for Guehi, who has just one year left on his deal at Crystal Palace
The Palace captain has been heavily linked with a move to Liverpool, with both clubs holding talks over a potential £35million deal.
But with Palace holding out for a fee of £40-45m, Sherwood believes Chelsea could take advantage and present a more attractive proposition for Guehi.
‘Marc Guehi is the obvious choice for Chelsea to replace Levi Colwill at centre-back,’ Sherwood told BetBrain. ‘He’s a player that will hit the ground running at Chelsea, having already played in the Premier League for a few years and to a very high standard.
‘They can risk waiting until next season when his contract at Crystal Palace expires, but there’ll be a queue to sign him, without doubt.
‘It looks like both Liverpool and Chelsea have turned Guehi’s head away from Palace. Ibrahima Konate is out of contract next season for Liverpool and while Guehi might not start ahead of him or Virgil van Dijk, he’d be a solid replacement if either left the club.
‘Even if Konate stayed, the best teams in the league have high quality cover in every position and Guehi would fit that bill.
‘My feeling is Steve Parish will want to try and keep hold of Guehi for as long as possible, but Palace know they can’t allow him to leave for free – it’d be a huge loss.’
Despite speculation on his future, Guehi – as well as the Arsenal-bound Eberechi Eze – are expected to start for Palace in Thursday’s Conference League play-off against Fredrikstad.
‘Many of you were surprised Marc and Ebs started and played almost the whole game [at Chelsea],’ Glasner said in his pre-match press conference. ‘Most of you will be surprised that they will start again [on Thursday] because of all the rumours.
‘But they are committed to the team, they have a contract here. They played a crucial part that we could be successful and they will play a crucial part as long as they are here.
‘They are good, they are committed to the team. When one of the players will leave they want to leave as the guys who always gave 100 per cent for Crystal Palace.
‘This is what they did since they signed many years ago and this is what we expect from them until the end of their contract, whenever this is.’
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.