REVEALED: Why Chelsea didn’t sign a striker on CHAOTIC Deadline Day

Robin Bairner

• 4 Sept 2025 07:15 BST
• 4 min read

News

As the dust continues to settle on the transfer window, Chelsea supporters might be left wondering why they did not see their side sign a striker.

Enzo Maresca’s squad seemed well set ahead of the weekend’s match against Fulham, but Liam Delap pulled up with a hamstring problem in that game, sparking a chain reaction that ultimately saw the club stall Nicolas Jackson’s transfer to Bayern Munich and recall Marc Guiu from Sunderland.

It was a hectic 48 hours at Stamford Bridge, during which the club had to rush long-term strategic decisions.

Ultimately, it was decided not to do anything rash, with BBC Sport Chelsea reporter Nizaar Kinsella explaining exactly why this was the case.

Two transfer possibilities

Chelsea did consider signing Conrad Harder from Sporting CP. Viktor Gyokeres’ backup last season, he was widely considered a likely starter in Lisbon this term but was instead courted by a number of European clubs, such as AC Milan and Rennes, before moving to RB Leipzig.

The Blues ultimately thought that the Denmark U21 forward would not be good enough for them in the long term.

Another possibility considered was Netherlands U21 striker Emanuel Emegha, who has long been on Chelsea’s radar at sister club Strasbourg. For the sake of his development, the club elected to keep him with the Ligue 1 team.

Instead, they turned to another possibility: recalling Marc Guiu from his loan with Sunderland.

The BBC reports that there was no recall option in the agreement and only the positive relationship between the two clubs was able to make this deal possible. Had Sunderland refused, Chelsea would likely have been forced to consider an alternative plan of action – that might well have led to an unexpected late deal.

Indeed, the decision to back Guiu is also seen as a sign that Chelsea one day want to sign Emegha. The feeling was that by adding Harder to Maresca’s squad, the route to the first team would have been complicated for the striker.

So why did Chelsea not sign a striker on Deadline Day? Ultimately, it’s because Sunderland’s willingness to give them Guiu back meant they did not need to.

Football transfer news headlines today

The summer’s most EMBARRASSING transfer blunder? Premier League stars go VIRAL

Chelsea face €35m bill as transfer talks stall

Chelsea and Man Utd 'prepare' €60m January bids for Crystal Palace star

The FIVE best signings of the summer revealed by transfer experts

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers' new app for all of football's big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•Google Play

•App Store