Serie A giants Juventus have reportedly initiated talks to sign out-of-favour Chelsea attacker Timo Werner.
According to The Guardian, Juventus have made an official approach to sign 26-year-old Chelsea forward Timo Werner on loan this summer. The German international has struggled to settle down at Stamford Bridge since arriving from RB Leipzig in the 2020 summer transfer window.
Chelsea paid £47.5 million for Timo Werner in the hope that he would lead their attack for years to come. But the 26-year-old has failed spectacularly to hit the ground running. He has made a total of 89 appearances for the west London club across all competitions, scoring 23 times and assisting 21 goals.
After 29 Premier League starts in his first season with the Blues, Werner was restricted to just 15 starts in the league in the recently-concluded campaign. He has also been forced to play on the flanks, along with featuring as a centre-forward or second striker for Chelsea.
The Germany international does not feature prominently in Thomas Tuchel’s plans going forward, and Chelsea could offload him this summer. Tuchel is eager to improve the Chelsea attack leading into the 2022/23 campaign after seeing his side struggle in the pre-season.
Discussions/contacts between Juve and Chelsea for Timo Werner started yesterday. Juve are exploring this idea alongside Álvaro Morata, top of the list for Allegri. ? #CFC
Chelsea could let Timo go on loan this summer, more to follow also on other clubs soon. https://t.co/7I57oxoZrb
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 26, 2022
Chelsea have signed Raheem Sterling from Manchester City but have loaned out Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan. While there has not been much change in the competition that Werner would face at the west London club, the 26-year-old seems to be nearing an exit this summer.
Werner has attracted interest from former club RB Leipzig, whereas Newcastle United are keeping tabs on his situation as well. But Juventus, who are primarily targeting Alvaro Morata, have now joined the race to sign Werner from Chelsea.
The Serie A giants see the German striker as an alternative if they fail to sign Morata permanently from Atletico Madrid. Juventus are, however, interested in a loan deal, with Werner’s high wages making it difficult for Chelsea to find a permanent suitor for him. Juventus had reportedly been open to a player plus cash deal involving Werner when the Blues were pursuing Matthijs de Ligt.
The former RB Leipzig striker reportedly earns around £275,000 per week at Stamford Bridge, a sum that other European clubs could struggle to match. Thus a loan exit seems the most feasible solution for all parties involved, and it will be interesting to see how talks progress between Chelsea and Serie A giants Juventus.
