Chelsea closing in on Michael Olise signing
- Chelsea have long been confident of winning the race for Olise's signature
- French midfielder has a release clause of £35m in his contract
- Olise is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury
Chelsea are moving closer to a deal to sign Crystal Palace midfielder Michael Olise, 90min understands.
Arsenal and Manchester City were both intrigued by news of a £35m release clause in Olise's contract but, as 90min reported last month, Chelsea have long been confident they would win the race for his signature.
Talks over personal terms have been ongoing for weeks and now sources have confirmed to 90min that Chelsea have taken a step forward in their negotiations with Palace as they seek to get an agreement over the line.
Olise, who can play both in midfield and out on the wing, spent several years in the Chelsea academy before leaving aged 14, while his brother Richard, 18, is part of the Blues' Under-21 setup currently.
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Chelsea hope to finalise Olise's signing soon but are in no rush to do so as the 21-year-old is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury he picked up at this summer's Under-21 European Championships.
Olise is not expected to return to the pitch until the end of September at the earliest so there is no imminent deadline to get the Frenchman registered for any upcoming fixtures, unlike midfielder Romeo Lavia, whose transfer from Southampton could be completed in time for the Belgian to face West Ham United on Sunday alongside fellow new arrival Moises Caicedo.
90min understands that Chelsea are expected to end their midfield rebuild once the moves for Lavia and Olise are finalised, with the Blues set to switch their attention to finding a goalkeeper to replace Kepa Arrizabalaga, who joined Real Madrid on loan and admitted during his presentation that he wants to stay in Spain beyond this season.
A new striker is also a possibility for Chelsea, who lost Christopher Nkunku to a knee injury for the next four months.
Nicolas Jackson has impressed up top for Mauricio Pochettino's side, but Chelsea are otherwise short in attack as 21-year-old Armando Broja is still pushing to return from an ACL injury. Academy striker Mason Burstow was on the bench for the season-opener against Liverpool.
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