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News
- 24 minutes ago
Chelsea chase €100m star amid Romeo Lavia injury woes
Cameron Smith
- Updated: 7 Nov 2025 16:11 GMT
- 4 min read
News
Chelsea are reportedly set to intensify their pursuit of Crystal Palace star Adam Wharton in 2026 amid Romeo Lavia’s injury troubles.
Lavia, 21, moved to Stamford Bridge from Southampton for a fee of €62.1 million in 2023, but he has endured a torrid spell on the sidelines since his arrival in west London.
Current ETV
Roméo Lavia
DM, M (C)
Chelsea
Roméo Lavia
DM, M (C)
Chelsea
ETV Range
€40.4M - €49.4M
The Belgium international has displayed glimpses of real promise whenever he has featured for the Blues, however he has only racked up 30 appearances for the club, while he has missed a total of 77 matches through injury.
After returning to full fitness in late September, Lavia has featured in four of Chelsea’s last five Premier League matches, however he was forced off in the eighth minute of their 2-2 draw versus Qarabag in the Champions League on Wednesday and is now set for another period on the treatment table.
While Chelsea retain faith in Lavia as a player, transfer reporter Graeme Bailey has revealed that Enzo Maresca’s side are eager to sign a new midfielder in 2026.
“In terms of Lavia, Chelsea think he’s great. They love him a lot. Obviously, he’s not being very fortunate with injuries at the minute. They think he is potentially properly able to compete with [Moises] Caicedo and [Enzo] Fernandez,” Bailey told The Chelsea Chronicle.
“They do rate him highly and as he’s just not been able to show that just yet. With every position with Chelsea the midfield department is something they’re always assessing.
“This injury isn’t kickstarting anything particularly. They were already looking at this. They were already assessing the midfield market.
“Will it be the opportunistic one? Will it be if Adam Wharton leaves next summer, do Chelsea think they’ve got to be in that battle? I think they probably will, but the same can be said of, if [Aurelien] Tchouameni or [Eduardo] Camavinga leave Real Madrid.
“These are players who they’ve got a long history of assessing. From what I’m hearing don’t be surprised if a centre midfielder comes in the summer but I think it’ll be one that one they’ve already done work on.”
Adam Wharton to Chelsea?
Chelsea are long-term admirers of Wharton and they were widely considered to be the frontrunners for his signature during his time at Blackburn Rovers before his eventual move to Crystal Palace.
The England international still has three-and-a-half years remaining on his current contract at Selhurst Park, but an exit is on the cards in 2026 and Palace co-owner Steve Parish has already admitted that a sale could take place.
It has previously been reported that Wharton could cost as much as €100m when Palace decide to sanction a departure, with Chelsea expected to face competition from Liverpool and Manchester United for his signature.
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