Another Brighton raid: Chelsea ‘closely monitoring’ €47m star

Chelsea are ‘closely monitoring’ Brighton attacker Georginio Rutter, according to a report.

The Blues have made a habit of raiding the Seagulls for their prized assets in recent years. After signing Marc Cucurella in 2022, Chelsea poached head coach Graham Potter and most of his staff from Brighton.

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The following summer, at which point Potter had already long been sacked, Chelsea broke the British transfer record when they beat Liverpool to the signing of Moises Caicedo for a whopping fee of €134 million. They also added goalkeeper Robert Sanchez that window.

This season, Chelsea have refrained from shopping on the South Coast, but this has not stopped them from admiring the work that is being done at at the Amex.

Indeed, Chelsea continue to be linked with a host of Brighton players, including Carlos Baleba, Bart Verbruggen and now Georginio Rutter as well.

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Chelsea want Rutter

According to Sky Germany, Chelsea are ‘closely monitoring’ the development of Rutter, who is currently nursing an injury. The Blues are said to have been impressed with his impact in the Premier League and have added him to their shortlist of targets.

The 22-year-old has scored eight goals and provided five assists so far this season, playing in a variety of attacking roles. Rutter only joined Brighton last summer in an eyebrow-raising €46.7 million deal from Leeds.

The Frenchman has always been supremely talented, but he has often struggled to perform consistently at a high level. The closest he has come to reaching his peak form was his final season at Leeds when he notched eight goals and an impressive 16 assists in the Championship.

His form this season hasn’t been outstanding, but it has evidently been enough to attract the attention of Chelsea. The report states that he could be ‘one to watch’ this summer, but he certainly won’t be cheap given Brighton’s outlay and the fact that he is still under contract until 2028.