CHELSEA are not backing down in the race to sign Crystal Palace star Michael Olise.
The Blues are facing Champions League competition in Bayern Munich in the race to sign the French winger.
Premier League rivals Newcastle, who finished three points behind Chelsea last season, are also in the hunt for the former Reading man – who has a release clause of around £60million.
Despite Bayern being able to offer the 22-year-old the prospect of playing in Europe’s top competition for the first time – there is still confidence at Stamford Bridge that a deal can be done.
The Blues thought they had landed Olise a year ago when triggering his old £35m release clause.
Only for the France Under-21 international to sign a shock new deal at Selhurst Park.
While that new deal gives Palace plenty of power when it comes to any deal, there is still an expectation in SE25 that Olise will leave the club this summer.
Chelsea players Trevoh Chalobah and Noni Madueke have been mooted as potential options to move the other way as part of any deal – with the release clause in Olise’s contract not straightforward.
It only be triggered by a Champions League club, according to The Telegraph.
Former club Reading would also be owed a percentage of any sale as a sell-on fee was included in the deal to take him to South London in 2021.
Olise spent seven years in the Chelsea academy before leaving at 14 and his brother, Richard, is still in the youth setup.
Olise signing his £100,000-a-week deal less than 12 months ago ensured Palace could implement a more lucrative release clause, though Chelsea are still be prepare to meet it.
He scored 10 times in 19 games during the 2023/24 campaign, but missed much of the season due to a hamstring problem.
Olise has been named in Thierry Henry’s provisional France squad for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The tournament runs from July 24 to August 9, meaning Olise would have just one week to recover before the start of the Premier League season should France make it to the gold medal match.
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