Chelsea ‘very close’ to third summer signing as agreement nears for Maresca favourite

Leicester midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall

An agreement between Chelsea and Leicester City for the transfer of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is now ‘very close’, sources have confirmed to TEAMtalk.

After already appointing Enzo Maresca as their new head coach after he led Leicester back into the Premier League, Chelsea have been preparing another raid on the Foxes for the signing of midfielder Dewsbury-Hall.

The Leicester academy product was previously on course to join Brighton, but Chelsea hijacked the move during the week and have been in constant dialogue with Leicester since in an attempt to get a deal done.

Their latest talks have been productive, with sources telling TEAMtalk’s Fraser Gillan that Dewsbury-Hall’s move to Chelsea is now ‘very close’.

The former Blackpool and Luton Town loanee is now set for a medical to finalise his move to Chelsea, where he is expected to sign a contract until 2030.

Sources have confirmed that the fee Chelsea are paying for Dewsbury-Hall will be in the region of £30m-£35m.

He is on course to become Chelsea’s third signing of the summer after defender Tosin Adarabioyo on a free from Fulham and attacking midfielder Omari Kellyman for £19m from Aston Villa.

Chelsea player to swap places with Dewsbury-Hall

Meanwhile, just as Brighton’s bid for Dewsbury-Hall would have included a counterpart in the shape of Jakub Moder, Chelsea academy product Michael Golding is now linked with a related move to Leicester.

“Chelsea have made proposal with same value as Brighton for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall: £30m fee. In that case there was Moder as part of the deal,” Fabrizio Romano posted on X.

“Now, there will be Chelsea young talent Michael Golding to join Leicester in separate transaction. Dewsbury-Hall wanted Chelsea, medical today.”

The 18-year-old also plays as a midfielder and only has one year remaining on his contract with Chelsea, for whom he made his only senior appearance in January when he came on at the end of an FA Cup third-round win over Preston.

The teenager is highly regarded behind the scenes at Stamford Bridge so Leicester have a player with a big future ahead of himself on their hands.

Including a counterpart has been tipped to unlock the deal for Dewsbury-Hall who is now one step closer to becoming a Chelsea player.

Dewsbury-Hall scored 12 goals and added 15 assists last season as Leicester gained an instant return to the top flight. He has previously played 59 times in the Premier League for the Foxes.

Last season in the Championship – under the guidance of Maresca – was definitely the best of his career so far. And now at the age of 25, he is ready to progress even further.

Maresca is willing to work with Dewsbury-Hall again, but the deal has crucially been backed and driven by Chelsea’s recruitment team.

Chelsea have invested a lot in their midfield over recent years, including massive deals for Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo. But none of their midfielders are left-footed, so Dewsbury-Hall could offer something different in their engine room.

He could follow in the footsteps of players like N’Golo Kante, Danny Drinkwater, Ben Chilwell and his own former teammate Wesley Fofana by moving from Leicester to Chelsea.