Report: Chelsea Among Suitors for Marseille's Florian Thauvin
Chelsea are weighing up whether to make a bid for Marseille's Florian Thauvin, with the midfielder thought to be considering leaving the French club.
Maurizio Sarri's side are currently fourth in the Premier League table but have struggled for goals at times this season. With Willian not a regular goalscorer and Alvaro Morata struggling for confidence, there is currently a goalscoring void to fill within the Chelsea team.
Metro claim that the west London club have been scouting Thauvin in their pursuit to plug the gap, given his outstanding goalscoring ratio in Ligue 1. The winger has been scoring goals for fun since joining Marseille, netting a staggering 33 times in 50 appearances for the club.
However, his disastrous spell in the Premier League with Newcastle may trouble the Chelsea scouts. Perhaps the only thing more risky than buying a player who isn't Premier League tested, is to acquire a player who has already failed to deliver the goods.
Nevertheless, his time in the Premier League was brief as Thauvin only made 16 appearances for Newcastle. Therefore, it could well be worth the risk to bring him back to England given his prolific goalscoring form in France.
Thauvin himself has admitted that he might be willing to leave Marseille, particularly if the French club fail to qualify for the Champions League this season.
Speaking to L'Equipe in May, he said: "I’m hungry for titles, that’s what remains at the end of your career.
"As for other championships, Spain makes me dream and I like Germany a lot because it could be good for my game, but I’m not thinking about my future
"I had a choice to make in the past [going to Newcastle] and I ended up being unhappy. In the future I will take the time to think about it, but I’m good here. I am in no hurry to leave."
However, Chelsea are not the only side interested in signing Thauvin. Should the Frenchman decide to leave Marseille, the likes of Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Atlético Madrid would also be interested in acquiring his services.
Were he to join, the addition of Thauvin would boost a Chelsea side still basking in the glory of their remarkable 2-0 victory over Manchester City on Saturday. Sarri's side face an away game against Vidi in the Europa League next, having already secured top spot in Group L.
