Chelsea to make Zaha bid and include Giroud in the deal

Chelsea are preparing a bid for Wilfried Zaha of Crystal Palace, according to The Times.

Zaha’s future with the Eagles was in doubt all through the summer transfer window, with the winger having gone as far as handing in a transfer request. Arsenal were reported as the club whose interest was the most serious, with concrete offers being made, but according to Roy Hodgson, no bid came anywhere close to the club’s valuation of their star player and nothing happened.

As for Zaha himself, the failure to force a move away from Selhurst Park has caused some friction between him and Will Salthouse, his agent with whom he now wants to sever ties.

Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has identified the 27-year-old Ivorian as his primary target, and Hodgson recently admitted that Palace would be forced to consider serious offers for the player. It would still be a problem for Chelsea to meet the £80 million price Palace have set, but they hope that offering Olivier Giroud as part of the deal would keep Palace interested.

If their pursuit of Zaha fails, they will consider Borussia Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho as an alternative, despite the fierce competition for the 19-year-old’s signature.