Chelsea report: Blues, Arsenal and Manchester United all in for Barcelona forward

Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal are all weighing up a move for Barcelona forward Memphis Depay, according to reports in Spain.

Depay moved to the Camp Nou on a free transfer in the summer of 2021, when Ronald Koeman was in charge of the club.

But the Netherlands international has fallen out of favour since Xavi Hernandez became Barcelona (opens in new tab) boss, with Depay restricted to just two appearances in La Liga so far this season.

Xavi is keen to keep his squad intact in the January transfer window, as Barcelona attempt to win the La Liga title ahead of Real Madrid (opens in new tab).

But Sport (opens in new tab) reports that Depay could nevertheless depart this month, with the player keen to secure more regular football elsewhere.

The report adds that Chelsea (opens in new tab), Manchester United (opens in new tab) and Arsenal (opens in new tab) have all sounded out Depay over a potential move to the Premier League before the beginning of February.

The Dutchman previously had a brief and unsuccessful stint at Old Trafford, but he has matured immensely since then.

All three clubs are on the lookout for new attackers, with Chelsea in desperate need of reinforcements at the top of the pitch amid a poor run of form.

United look light up front following Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure by mutual consent in November, while Arsenal are having to make do without Gabriel Jesus due to injury.

Chelsea, who lost 4-0 to Manchester City (opens in new tab) in the FA Cup on Sunday, will return to action against Fulham (opens in new tab) on Thursday.

More Chelsea stories

Chelsea are among a number of clubs linked with a move for Brighton’s Argentine World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister, but the midfielder says he is in no haste to leave the Seagulls (opens in new tab).

The Blues have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Enzo Fernandez, with Benfica refusing to budge on their asking price (opens in new tab).

Meanwhile, Celtic’s Josip Juranovic and Inter Milan’s Denzel Dumfries are said to have been identified as potential right-back targets (opens in new tab), with Reece James out injured again.

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Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who’s filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha’s Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).