Chelsea transfer news: Carney Chukwuemeka signing being 'pushed' by new Bundesliga admirers

Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka reportedly has another Bundesliga club chasing his signature.

The 21-year-old spent the second half of the last campaign on loan at Borussia Dortmund, where he stayed for their Club World Cup campaign.

While the playmaker was short of starts for the German giants, he was able to accumulate 17 appearances and 381 minutes of football.

Most importantly, he avoided any significant fitness issues during his time at the Westfalenstadion as he bids to get his once-promising career back on track.

Dortmund have publicly acknowledged that they would like to re-sign Chukwuemeka for 2025-26 if they can successfully negotiate a deal with their Chelsea counterparts.

Dortmund rival leads Chukwuemeka race

However, as per Sky Sport Deutschland journalist Florian Plettenberg, RB Leipzig are looking to win the race for the former Aston Villa starlet.

Plettenberg says that Leipzig have opened talks regarding the acquisition of the Englishman and those will continue on Wednesday.

Chelsea are known to prefer a permanent sale over another loan arrangement for Chukwuemeka, something which may benefit Leipzig's cause.

Over the past 48 hours, officials from both clubs have started discussions over a deal for Leipzig star Xavi Simons, who is seemingly interested in a transfer to Stamford Bridge.

Should Chelsea be able to sign Simons, Leipzig would have funds at their disposal to sign Chukwuemeka having realistically held productive discussions over each deal.

As it stands, it is unclear whether Chukwuemeka has a preference. Despite enjoying his time with Dortmund, being restricted to two starts by Niko Kovac will come into his thinking.

Right time for Chukwuemeka Chelsea exit?

The majority of Chelsea supporters have been longing to see Chukwuemeka become a first-choice pick in the starting lineup under several different managers.

He held that role during the early days of Mauricio Pochettino, scoring a goal against West Ham United on the second weekend of 2023-24, but he would suffer a significant knee injury before the half-time whistle.

Since then, the only time that Chukwuemeka has played more than 24 minutes in a competitive Chelsea match came when a heavily-rotated squad travelled to Kazakhstan to face FC Astana in the Conference League.

Chukwuemeka also remains without a 90-minute outing in a senior match throughout his professional career, a startling statistic when he is just three months short of his 22nd birthday.

With Chelsea having become world champions and with a bagful of options in the final third, now is the time to cash in on Chukwuemeka, even if it is for a fee lower than they wanted with the inclusion of a sell-on clause.

Written by
Darren Plant