EUR 60 million – this is how much Chelsea paid for Christopher Nkunku in the summer of 2023. The Frenchman, who came to London from RB Leipzig, was supposed to be the offensive leader of the Stamford Bridge team. He had, but for now his transfer is a big failure for the club's American owners.
In the first season, Nkunku played only 14 matches, spent just over 500 minutes on the pitch and scored three goals during that time. All because of the serious knee injury the Frenchman suffered during the preparation period and the thigh injury he suffered in March 2024.
Overcoming his health problems and the arrival of Enzo Mareska at Stamford Bridge were supposed to be a new beginning for Nkunku at the club. They did, but they also weren't. This season, the Frenchman mainly serves as a replacement for Nicolas Jackson in Chelsea's attack.
This season, Nkunku played 28 times and scored 13 goals. However, the Frenchman scored only two of them in the Premier League, in which he played only 390 minutes. Nkunku's remaining goals came in the Conference League qualifying and league stages (seven), the League Cup (three) and the FA Cup (one).
An unexpected exchange between Chelsea and Bayern?
Already during the autumn round, the English media reported that Nkunku was dissatisfied with his position at Chelsea. Already in the winter, the Frenchman was supposed to be looking for a club where he would play regularly, and there are a lot of indications that he has found such a club.
On Monday evening, the English and German media unanimously reported that Bayern Munich was very interested in the player. “Bild” even added that the Bavarians had already reached an agreement with the player regarding an individual contract.
The player himself is also determined to transfer. For this to happen, however, Bayern must reach an agreement with Chelsea. And this will not be easy, because the Londoners will want to either recover a large part of the money invested or get a replacement for Nkunku.
According to the English media, Chelsea would be ready to agree to an exchange of players if they received Mathys Tel in exchange for Nkunku. The 19-year-old Frenchman joined Bayern in the summer of 2022 from Rennes for EUR 28.5 million. For now, however, he has not won a permanent place in the Bavarians' squad.
So far, Tel has played 81 matches for Bayern, in which he scored 16 goals and had six assists. This season, the Frenchman played only 12 times, staying on the pitch for only 351 minutes. Tel didn't score a goal and didn't have an assist.
According to “The Telegraph”, Chelsea asked about the Frenchman already in the summer. Back then, Bayern did not want to sell the player, but now they may change their mind due to Nkunku's interest. Although the parties have not started negotiations yet, both the English and the Germans argue that this may happen in the coming days, and the transfer may be carried out as early as January.