Insider: Why Christopher Nkunku and his people shouldn’t test Chelsea resolve over transfer | OneFootball

With the January transfer window just 6 weeks away and an international break upon us, it’s a nice time to have a roundup of some of the latest rumours and chatter surrounding Chelsea, and that’s just what the London is Blue podcast did in getting Chelsea insider Ben Jacobs on board.

There is one headline rumour for Chelsea at the moment – the idea that Christopher Nkunku is already tiring of his B team role and is already pushing for a move away, with Manchester United apparently interested.

Jacobs was asked whether this was a genuine attempt by Nkunku and his people to get the Frenchman out of the club ASAP, or whether this was just a way to “position” himself to get more minutes through the rest of the season and beyond.

You can see them speaking in the clip embedded here, with Jacob’s answer to this topic coming after 3 minutes:

Chelsea directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart doing an interview for Chelsea

Nkunku in tricky position due to boardroom politics

One thing we would warn Nkunku and his people, however, is that he might not have as much leverage as he thinks. The fact that he was signed by Christopher Vivell, who has now departed the club, means that the current sporting directors don’t seem to be as wedded to his success as they might be had they signed him.

Despite his obvious quality, this means they might be more open to selling him than Nkunku thinks. Selling a top player to a rival would have been unthinkable in the past. Right now, the chance to recoup a £50m or so fee might prove tempting enough that strengthening a rival isn’t an issue for Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, who are more focused on making Chelsea (and in particular the players they picked) look good, rather than worrying about their rivals.