Chelsea could offer one of their men an opportunity to stake his claim long-term at Stamford Bridge following recent developments regarding his contract situation, according to reports.
What's the latest news involving Chelsea?
According to The Guardian, Chelsea will look to prioritise bringing in an experienced striker to help with their goal flow in the final third of the pitch and to alleviate pressure bestowed upon the shoulders of Nicolas Jackson. Brentford's Ivan Toney and Napoli striker Victor Osimhen are both being targeted by the Blues as they look to try and return to a position where they are capable of challenging for the top honours in English football.
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano meanwhile has shared quotes from Mauricio Pochettino on X detailing his satisfaction with the improvement Mykhailo Mudryk has been showing in recent weeks, which read: Pochettino: "Trust me, Mudryk is really making a massive effort to try to integrate himself. He's trying to understand better what it means to play like a team but he is young and for sure he is going to improve. We are so happy in how he is improving."
Journalist Ben Jacobs has informed GIVEMESPORT that Mudryk has also formed close relationships with England international Ben Chilwell and Senegalese striker Jackson as he continues to try and live up to his £88.5 million price tag.
Chelsea travel to face Fulham at Craven Cottage on Monday as the Blues aim to secure just their second victory of the Premier League campaign and begin to move up the divisional standings. Midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka has returned to full training and may be available for the west London derby after being absent since his side's 3-1 defeat to West Ham United back in August.
Who could sign a new contract at Chelsea?
According to Football Insider, Chelsea defender Ian Maatsen has opened talks over a new deal at Stamford Bridge after Pochettino changed his mind on the 21-year-old in a fresh twist, given that the Argentinian coach was open to letting him leave in the summer transfer window for the right fee.
Pochettino apparently changed tact and prevented Maatsen from leaving Chelsea late in the window despite the club initially accepting an offer for his services from Burnley, and it's believed his strong showing in pre-season in several different roles may have earned him a second chance in west London.
Maatsen has managed to make just seven appearances in his time at Stamford Bridge and will undoubtedly be keen to unseat both Levi Colwill and Chilwell as he aims to feature more often on the left-hand side of defence, as per Transfermarkt.
The Netherlands international, who was labelled "exceptional" by former teammate Simon Moore, also leads the way in comparison to his positional peers across the next 14 competitions around Europe in the field of attempted passes, averaging around 74.65 per 90 minutes in the last 365 days, putting him in the 98th percentile for this metric, as per FBRef.
Looking ahead, Chelsea will be keen to continue the momentum from their victory over Brighton & Hove Albion in the Carabao Cup last week and will also hope to tie Maatsen down to a new deal before his contract expires next summer.
