Welcome to the summer silly season! Chelsea FC were essentially “champions” of this competition, last time out, as they outspent the rest of the world, by a considerable margin, in the last summer transfer window.
Owner Roman Abramovich greenlighted a sum of about £220 million last summer, as the club made five new signings, and added two more on a free. We could have another summer spending spree in 2021, so let’s dive right in with the latest Blues transfer news.
First we have an item about an outgoing player, and by outgoing, we don’t mean extraverted, we mean being sent out on loan. This is one that has been bantered about for some time– midfielder Billy Gilmour, 20, will join Norwich City as a loanee this season.
“I’m very excited to be here,” Gilmour, who really impressed in Euro 2020 for Scotland (especially against England), said in an official club statement.
“I can’t wait for the season ahead. I’ve been looking forward to coming here, playing as much as possible and helping Norwich City compete in the Premier League.”
Norwich won the Championship flight this past season, so they are now back up in the Premier League. They open up at home against Liverpool on August 14. Gilmour is definitely a player that rates, and he’s quite highly regarded at Stamford Bridge, but that position group is overly loaded.
This is a great move for all involved. Elsewhere long time target and Chelsea academy product Declan Rice has been rejecting West Ham United contract extension offers.
The 22-year-old midfielder is also wanted by Manchester United, in addition to Chelsea, and he’s reportedly valued at £101.4m ($140 million), a high price that puts him in elite company with the most prized players this summer transfer window.
There is always an extra premium to be paid for English talent, and given his starting all four games for Three Lions at Euro 2020, and his playing extremely well in all of those games, the premium price point soars even higher.
He’s got three seasons left on his contract with the Irons, who will do all they can to hold on to him as long as possible. Chelsea have not made a splash signing this summer, and Declan Rice would certainly be that, as getting him over the line will be a change in 2021.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.
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