Chelsea appears to have been boosted by the news that only one of Victor Osimhen and Ivan Toney can head out to Saudi Arabia after this morning’s developments, in which both were discussing transfers to switch to the Middle East.

Napoli striker Victor Osimhen has been one of the most talked about transfer commodities in recent transfer windows, joined by Brentford’s Ivan Toney, with plenty of clubs linked with a new striker. Chelsea and Arsenal have been persistently linked with moves for both forwards, who were reported to have agreed to move to the Middle East this morning. 

However, a new twist has emerged in both strikers’ transfer sagas after Chelsea were linked with approaching both strikers this week, and that twist can boost Chelsea’s hopes of signing either forward.

Only one of Chelsea’s targets can switch to Saudi Arabia.

Both players were reported to have agreed a deal to join Saudi Pro League club Al Ahli this morning, with the club paying £100 million for both of the forwards. That appeared to have dealt a massive blow to Chelsea’s transfer window, with a new striker high on the list for Maresca’s side. 

However, that blow has been softened as the saga takes another twist after Sky Sports reported that only one of the prolific goalscoring forwards is capable of heading out to the Middle East. It has been revealed that senior sources informed the media outlet that it is not possible for both to move due to the restrictions on foreign players that the Saudi Pro League has in place. That does not necessarily mean that the deal for both would not happen, however, as they could structure a deal to sell one of their current squad to facilitate that move, but there have been no reports of any exits looking likely.

Chelsea should hope for a deal for Osimhen.

Regarding which player the Premier League side should be hopeful of poaching at the last minute on deadline day, it should be Osimhen. The Nigerian has been playing at the top of his game in Serie A with Napoli for some time now and has one thing on his resume that Toney does not possess, which is European experience.

While the English striker does have experience in the English top flight, Chelsea will be targeting a push towards Champions League football and could be a contender for the top four this season after a busy transfer window. While they possess the largest squad in the league and require outgoings, a striker with a goalscoring record like the Napoli man would boost their recruitment. However, it may not be easy to convince the Nigerian to switch without having Champions League football already, regardless of the money on offer for Osimhen.