Chelsea quoted £100m to complete transfer as Pedro Neto sends exciting message

The latest Chelsea news as Enzo Maresca prepares his side for the Premier League clash against Nottingham Forest this weekend.

It’s been a positive few weeks for Chelsea with the team back in Premier League action this weekend as they look to maintain their positive form.

A much-changed Blues side came out as 4-2 winners over Belgian side Gent on Thursday night, thanks to goals from Renato Veiga, Pedro Neto, Christopher Nkunku and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Chelsea return to Premier League action this weekend as they look to strengthen their challenge for a top-four finish at the end of the season.

Enzo Maresca’s side currently sit in fourth place in the Premier League table, two points behind leaders Liverpool and just one behind Man City and Arsenal. They take on Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon.

Ahead of the game, Maresca has played down talk of the team challenging City, Arsenal and Liverpool for the Premier League title at the end of the season. It’s just one of the talking points over the last few days.

Football.london takes a look at a couple of the other stories doing the rounds at Stamford Bridge. We’ve also given our own thoughts on the situation.

£80m Jhon Duran message sent

Aston Villa have slapped a price tag of over £80 million on striking hero Jhon Duran with Chelsea reportedly maintaining their interest in the striker.

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TEAMtalk report that Villa are ready to raise the asking price to closer to £100 million if the Colombian's goalscoring form continues. Chelsea were linked in the summer, but Villa were reluctant to let the striker go.

The report adds that Chelsea maintain their interest. It adds that signing him in January is ‘not impossible’ but would take a huge fee.

FL Says: Duran has stolen all of the headlines for Villa under Unai Emery so far this season, despite starting just one game in all competitions. That came in the 2-1 Carabao Cup win over Wycombe where he scored the winning goal.

Coming off the bench, Duran has scored another five goals this season, including the winner in a 1-0 Champions League victory over Bayern Munich this week. His impact will make it hard to convince Villa to sell, especially in January.

It will also mean that his price from what Chelsea may have paid in January will now shoot up. If the impact he could have at Stamford Bridge could be worth between £80m and £100m is something that Chelsea will have to consider when the January window comes around.

Neto’s exciting admission

Someone who did arrive in the summer is Pedro Neto, who joined in a £54 million move from Wolves. The winger scored his second goal for the club in Thursday night’s 4-1 UEFA Conference League victory over Gent.

But he has now made an exciting admission over his future. Speaking to DAZN in Portugal, via Goal, he said: “I’m not at my best shape yet.

“I want to get there and I’m working hard to do so. I’ve had very little pre-season and I’ve always said that I’m going to work hard to reach my best moment and become a better player."

He added: “It’s been great, I’m learning a lot, I’m improving, I feel better and better, closer and closer to my level. It’s always unbelievable to score in front of these fans, who are so supportive. It was a great victory [vs Gent]."

FL says: Neto has found himself behind the likes of Noni Madueke and Cole Palmer in the pecking order at Stamford Bridge so far, and is also in contention with Jadon Sancho for a starting place. But in his time on the pitch he has shown glimpses of what he can do.

The fact he has admitted that he is not quite up to speed yet makes it an exciting proposition. The one worry was if the winger could maintain his fitness after an injury-hit couple of seasons.

If he can do so in a Chelsea shirt, then, when up to full fitness, he will be fierce competition for that starting spot in Maresca’s team.

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