West Ham have been tipped to rescue Ben Chilwell from Chelsea following his difficult period at Stamford Bridge.
Chilwell has only featured once for Chelsea this season after being advised to leave the club over the summer by new manager Enzo Maresca.
Maresca said Chilwell and Raheem Sterling should find new clubs if they hoped to feature regularly this season and banished them both from first-team training.
Sterling left to join Arsenal on a season-long loan deal but his fellow England international Chilwell stayed put.
It was thought that Chilwell’s return to first-team action in the League Cup against Barrow would represent the start of a comeback of sorts for a player who cost the club £50m in 2020.
But Chilwell has not been offered any minutes in Chelsea’s subsequent five games and was not even on the bench for the 2-1 defeat to Liverpool last weekend.
Given Maresca’s stance, Chilwell was linked with other Premier League clubs last summer – including Manchester United – and will surely look to leave west London when the transfer market reopens in January.
Ex-England goalkeeper Paul Robinson ‘suspects’ Chilwell is desperate to move to get his career back on track and ‘can see’ a move to West Ham materialising.
‘A loan deal [to West Ham] would do the trick,’ Robinson said on The Inside Track podcast. ‘Ben Chilwell is a very, very good player who has been frozen out at Chelsea.
‘For his international hopes as well [he needs to leave]. Location-wise it works for him too, it’s another London club so you’re not uprooting your family.
‘We do see some big deals done in January. A move like that could be a summer one but that would be a short-team solution for Chilwell and Chelsea.
‘I don’t know his situation but I suspect he’s desperate to get back on the football pitch and playing again.
‘I wouldn’t say he’s the answer to West Ham’s problems but I certainly think he improves that side. I think West Ham fans would take Ben Chilwell and I think he would play there.
‘Going forward with his delivery as well into the box, West Ham obviously lost James Ward-Prowse and his delivery, and Chilwell brings that into the side.
‘If Chilwell is on the table, it would be a great signing for West Ham. If he available, I think other teams would be interested as well but I could see that one happening.’
West Ham had high hopes for the 2024-25 campaign under new boss Julen Lopetegui but are currently just 15th in the Premier League with two wins from eight.
The Hammers will be desperate to produce an improved performance on Sunday when Manchester United visit the London Stadium.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have enjoyed an impressive start to the season but lost at Anfield last weekend. Maresca’s side play host to Newcastle United this weekend.
.
.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.