Chelsea to sign Atletico Madrid's Joao Felix with Conor Gallagher going other way

Chelsea is poised to acquire Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix, aged 24, in a transaction that may facilitate the transfer of Blues midfielder Conor Gallagher, also 24, to the Spanish club.

Reports indicate that Chelsea has reached an agreement with Atletico for a fee of £40 million to bring Felix back to Stamford Bridge.

Felix's previous loan stint at Chelsea during the latter half of the 2022/23 season was underwhelming, as he netted four goals in 20 appearances. The Portugal international, who was on loan at Barcelona last season, is thought to have been presented with a six-year contract by Chelsea.

The potential signing of Felix could pave the way for Gallagher to finalize his transfer to Atletico, following the collapse of his move last week when Chelsea could not finalize a deal for Madrid striker Samu Omorodion.

Atletico required the sale of Omorodion or another player to fund Gallagher's transfer, who has been training alone since returning to Chelsea after being seen in Spain ahead of his anticipated £33 million move.

Chelsea, having suffered a 2-0 defeat in their opening Premier League match against Manchester City on Sunday, is also reported to have received an offer from Napoli for Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku. The 31-year-old, who previously played for Manchester United and Everton, spent last season on loan at Roma.

In addition, the future of Raheem Sterling at Chelsea remains uncertain, as new manager Enzo Maresca has indicated plans to address the situation of the former England winger in the coming days.

Sterling was omitted from the squad that faced City, and his representatives have issued a statement expressing concern over this decision.