Chelsea have reportedly moved to the brink of signing Cole Palmer after agreeing a fee with Manchester City.
Having been a fringe member of the first team since breaking into the senior setup, Palmer seemingly announced himself on the big stage earlier this month.
The England Under-21 international scored a terrific individual goal during the Community Shield against Arsenal, before he also netted versus Sevilla in the UEFA Super Cup.
However, Palmer has not been provided with any football since that success on August 16, remaining as an unused substitute against Newcastle United and Sheffield United.
That is despite Pep Guardiola having only recently brought in Jeremy Doku as a new attacker for the flank and City being far from convincing in either fixture.
© Reuters
With three years remaining on Palmer's contract, the expectation was that he would remain at the Etihad Stadium and earn regular minutes under Guardiola.
Instead, discussions with the Spaniard have seemingly led to the 21-year-old seeing his future elsewhere, with Brighton & Hove Albion and West Ham United having also been monitoring the situation.
Nevertheless, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Palmer is instead on the brink of completing an unlikely transfer to Chelsea.
Reports began to emerge on Wednesday morning, with the indication being that the Blues had identified Palmer as a possible addition ahead of Friday's transfer deadline.
© Reuters
Within hours of the initial report, it was claimed that a £35m proposal had been rejected, before it was later followed by Chelsea allegedly agreeing terms with their City counterparts.
The West Londoners are said to be ready to pay £40m plus £5m in add-ons for Palmer, who has agreed to the transfer and will now undergo a medical.
Although head coach Mauricio Pochettino insisted that he "knew nothing" about any developments with Palmer at a press conference on Wednesday night, the Argentine has reportedly given his blessing to the signing.
Palmer is now in line to depart his boyhood club having contributed six goals and two assists from his 41 appearances in all competitions, immediately becoming an option in the final third for Chelsea due to their relative lack of depth in that area.
Darren Plant
