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Yesterday — 17 June 2026Main stream

Report: Chelsea ask about five players from Xabi Alonso’s former club

17 June 2026 at 17:48

Chelsea could reportedly be exploring a major transfer raid on Xabi Alonso’s former club Real Madrid this summer.

According to Simon Phillips, the Blues have used recent talks with Real Madrid over Marc Cucurella’s sale to also ask about five of their players.

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Chelsea are seemingly keen on the likes of Alvaro Carreras, Arda Guler, Aurelien Tchouameni, Victor Valdepenas, and Dean Huijsen.

Huijsen was notably a target for Chelsea while he was at Bournemouth, while Carreras could be an interesting one to watch as he’s directly impacted by the arrival of another left-back in the form of Cucurella.

What’s going on with Chelsea’s transfer strategy?

It’s early days yet for Chelsea in this transfer window, but the sale of Cucurella is unlikely to inspire much confidence.

This was an experienced and consistent performer in a generally struggling squad, and the speed at which the deal was done perhaps indicates that CFC didn’t even put up much of a fight to persuade him to stay, or to at the very least get a bigger fee from his sale.

Chelsea signed Cucurella for a £60m package in 2022, as per BBC Sport, and the fee reported by BBC Sport for the Spain international’s move to the Bernabeu is just under that at £51.8m.

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Even if Chelsea do replace Cucurella with Carreras, that’s a bit of a risk for a player who’d possibly end up looking like a downgrade rather than an upgrade.

Some of those other Madrid players could be exciting additions, particularly Tchouameni or Guler, but it remains to be seen how likely it is that players of that calibre would now move to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea don’t have European football next season after finishing 10th in the Premier League, and the current project just doesn’t seem to be heading in a positive direction at all.

Perhaps Alonso’s presence can persuade some players to join, especially if they’ve already worked under him and have seen just how successful a coach he can be.

The post Report: Chelsea ask about five players from Xabi Alonso’s former club appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Before yesterdayMain stream

Chelsea weighing up move for €50m La Liga defender who has worked with Xabi Alonso

16 June 2026 at 16:44

Chelsea are in need of a left-back after Marc Cucurella’s move to Real Madrid was confirmed on Monday, depositing €55m (£47.5m) plus €5m (£4.3m) in variables in their accounts. The solution could well be found at the Santiago Bernabeu.

One of the reasons that Chelsea were comfortable allowing Cucurella to leave is the development of Jorrel Hato, who they believe can step into the void left by the Spain international. The 27-year-old had also expressed a desire to return to Spain, and with two years left on his deal, it perhaps made sense for the Blues to cash in. Nevertheless, Hato is their only specialist at left-back now.

Chelsea weighing up move for Alvaro Carreras

Alvaro Carreras of Real Madrid
Alvaro Carreras of Real Madrid (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)

As a product of Cucurella arriving at Real Madrid, Los Blancos now have four left-backs on their books, with Fran Garcia, Ferland Mendy and Alvaro Carreras. The latter of course arrived only last summer for a fee of €50m from Benfica, and did so with the approval of Xabi Alonso, who was arriving as manager at the time too.

According to Diario AS, Chelsea are now considering a move for Carreras. Alonso is familiar with him, and Carreras would have no issues adapting to English football, having previously been at Manchester United and played on loan at Preston North End. They say that Los Blancos would be looking to be recover most of the fee they spent for him, and while Carreras is keen to stay, the door could be open to a move if Cucurella is a de facto starter.

Carreras’ debut season at Real Madrid

Image via DAZN MX. Carreras in action at the Bernabeu.
Image via DAZN MX. Carreras in action at the Bernabeu.

Carreras’ first season in Spain more or less mirrored that of Alonso, starting off in fine fashion and becoming one of the early contenders for best signings in the first third of the year. As things started to go wrong, Carreras’ form nosedived though, and he finished the season out of the team, behind both Garcia and Mendy. He also had a run-in with Antonio Rudiger in training, reportedly being slapped by the ex-Chelsea centre-back.

The post Chelsea weighing up move for €50m La Liga defender who has worked with Xabi Alonso appeared first on CaughtOffside.

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