Chelsea have made a move to sign Michael Olise from Crystal Palace (Getty)
Chelsea are in talks with Crystal Palace over a deal for Michael Olise.
The Crystal Palace midfielder started just 14 Premier League games this season due to hamstring issues but still made a huge impact with 10 goals and six assists.
Olise was wanted by Chelsea last summer and the club activated his £35 million release clause but the 22-year-old turned down a move to Stamford Bridge and signed a new deal with Palace.
Chelsea have now made a fresh approach to sign Olise and have asked Palace for permission to speak with the player’s representatives.
However, The Telegraph reports that Chelsea could face an issue over the transfer fee as Olise has a £60 million release clause in his deal with Palace, but it may only be activated by a club who are playing in the Champions League.
That would mean Chelsea would need to negotiate a separate deal with Palace over a fee for Olise.
Michael Olise has a £60m release clause in his deal with Crystal Palace (Getty)
It’s understood that both Newcastle United and Bayern Munich have also been in contact with Palace over Olise’s availability.
Manchester United are also interested in the Palace midfielder and are now expected to press on with their transfer business after deciding to keep Erik ten Hag in place as manager.
Olise, meanwhile, was named in France’s provisional squad for the Olympics, although head coach Thierry Henry has admitted that he has faced resistance from some Premier League clubs over the availability of some of his players.
Chelsea, for example, have allowed 20-year-old midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu to be part of France’s squad but will not allow Malo Gusto or Benoit Badiashile to represent their nation at the tournament, which begins on July 24.
Chelsea are also in talks with Aston Villa to sign Jhon Duran, with reports in Colombia this week claiming that a £42m fee has been agreed between the two clubs.
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