Chelsea have reached an agreement in principle to sell Conor Gallagher to Atletico Madrid for £33million plus add-ons, talkSPORT understands.
The Blues had originally been quoting £50m for Gallagher, who’s yet to debate personal terms with the Spanish side.
Tottenham are still monitoring the situation, having been excited about the England international since last yr.
Meanwhile, it’s understood that Aston Villa had a club-record bid for Gallagher accepted in June, nonetheless, the player decided against the move.
A suggestion of a brand new three-year contract was reportedly on the table for Gallagher on multiple occasions this summer but he’s rebuffed them.
The 24-year-old has been on Chelsea’s books since he was eight years old and after 4 loan spells away he broke into the primary team two years ago.
He was then made the club’s de facto captain with first and second decisions Reece James and Ben Chilwell largely missing all of last season with injuries.
Gallagher has long been linked with a departure from Chelsea over the past 12 months, though, despite missing only one Premier League game last season.
Nonetheless, with the midfielder entering the ultimate yr of his contract this yr, the Blues have needed to work harder to seek out a suitor.
Atletico Madrid got interested earlier this summer but wouldn’t meet Chelsea’s asking price.
But a breakthrough was made this week with the west London outfit drastically lowering their valuation, accepting Atletico’s bid of £33m, plus add-ons which could reach £37.9m.
That may be a heavy £17m lower than what Chelsea had initially hoped for – and understood to be lower than what Villa were offering – though the total fee might increase if add-ons are met.
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Gallagher may also turn down the possibility to maneuver to Atletico, having yet to debate personal terms.
But it surely’s understood the player is interested in the project in Spain with Atleti in a position to offer Champions League football and the possibility to be coached by Diego Simeone.
Nonetheless, the total fee can be counted as pure profit on the books at Stamford Bridge, where other players might leave under similar circumstances.
Academy graduate Trevoh Chalobah was told to remain at home because the squad jetted off for america on a pre-season tour in a bid to force the defender out.
One other Cobham product Lewis Hall was sold over the summer to Newcastle after certain clauses in an initial loan deal were met.
And Ian Maatsen, one other player to return up through the youth system at Chelsea, was allowed to affix Aston Villa on a everlasting deal just weeks after leading Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final.
Nonetheless, the choice to sell Gallagher will come as a blow to Chelsea fans, where he was a fan favourite, while club legend Joe Cole explicitly told the club to not let him go.
