Chelsea face competition from Bundesliga side for talented French striker
By Evan Curnew
Chelsea’s Todd Boehly is expected to take advantage of his new ownership of Ligue 1 side Strasbourg. Top young talent, particularly those from France, will be able to develop at the club in hopes of one day joining Chelsea. Young French midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu who has joined Chelsea is expected to be immediately loaned to Strasbourg ahead of the upcoming season. There is another youngster from France who Chelsea would like to do the same with, Elye Wahi.
As The Top Flight covered last week, Chelsea saw a £24m bid rejected by Montpellier for Wahi. What will likely kick Chelsea’s pursuit of Wahi into high gear is the possibility of someone else becoming the frontrunner for Wahi’s signature. Fabrizio Romano is reporting that Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt are pushing to sign Elye Wahi. They reportedly want to build their long-term project around the striker. Romano states that Chelsea is absolutely still in the race, even after seeing their bid rejected, and the expectation is still that he would be loaned to Strasbourg.
Frankfurt is likely preparing for the eventual departure of top forward Randal Kolo Muani, whether it is this summer transfer window or in January. Chelsea’s striker situation for the future is still unclear, perhaps clearing a lane for Wahi to be a part of the project.
Strasbourg finished not far off relegation in Ligue 1 last season, but with Todd Boehly coming into the picture, things will likely be on the up for the club. Even then, there is a potential risk that Elye Wahi will not perform as well as he did with Montpellier on a weaker side. Wahi netted 19 goals last season, placing him 7th for league scoring. He has 34 goals in 84 Ligue 1 matches to date and is a current French U21 international.