Chelsea have not scored in their last three outings. Thus, the club’s need for more goalscorers up top is pretty evident. Joao Pedro had been brilliant following the arrival of Liam Rosenior but has drawn a few blanks lately. Nobody else has stepped up and found the back of the net either.
Liam Delap is already being linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge. He has scored just three times since his £30 million move from Ipswich Town in the summer.
On the other hand, there are question marks over the future of Nicolas Jackson. He pushed through a loan move to Bayern Munich. It has not gone according to plan and he looks likely to return to Chelsea at the end of the season. But after how he handled things last summer, one has to wonder if he will ever wear the Royal Blue jersey again.
Amid all this, it looks like a Bayer Leverkusen striker has caught the eye of Chelsea. But one of their London rivals is leading the race to sign him.
Chelsea’s interest in Bayer Leverkusen striker confirmed by his agent
The player we are talking about is 19-year-old Cameroon international, Christian Kofane. He has enjoyed a breakthrough campaign at Bayer Leverkusen this season.
In 39 appearances and 1745 minutes of action for Bayer Leverkusen, Kofane has scored seven goals and provided eight assists. The 19-year-old has found the back of the net against Borussia Dortmund and assisted against teams like PSG and Manchester City in the Champions League. He has also scored twice for Cameroon.
Thus, it is not hard to understand the hype surrounding the Bayer Leverkusen youngster. According to the Daily Arsenal, Eric Depolo, the agent of Kofane said:
“Yes, Arsenal’s interest is genuine. The manager (Mikel Arteta) likes him very much.”
When asked about other clubs that are interested in Kofane, Depolo said:
“Chelsea, Newcastle, Everton, Brentford, Barcelona and Bayern Munich.”
Chelsea want to sign Christian Kofane but Arsenal are leading the race
The race for Kofane’s signature seems to be wide open, with so many clubs interested. But it looks like Arsenal are the ones leading at this moment. Depolo said:
“I think it is too early to say, but due to the fact that the player speaks Spanish, like Mikel Arteta, and that William Saliba is originally from Cameroon, I would say Arsenal are in pole position.”
Of course, there is still a long way to go. It remains to be seen how things will play out from here. It is worth pointing out though that Kofane might not be what Chelsea need at this point in time.
For years, Chelsea fans have been calling out for experience and proven quality to be brought into the squad. Signing Kofane would be more of the same. A 19-year-old striker who might or might not develop into a top player one day. But the Blues are in need of players who can go straight into the starting XI and perform from day one.
