Chelsea unearthed one of the best players in the Premier League last season with summer 2023 signing Cole Palmer from Manchester City, and he is a potential perennial source of 20 goals after rattling off 22 for the Blues last season.
But Chelsea still don’t have a top striker to lead the line. Fellow summer 2023 addition Nicolas Jackson showed signs of growth at the end of his first Chelsea campaign, but he still seems to be too inconsistent to be a true superstar striker in the Premier League.
As Chelsea continue to look at options on the open market at striker, here are their five best bets in the summer 2024 transfer window.
Victor Osimhen, Napoli
Napoli star Victor Osimhen is reportedly no longer a transfer target for Chelsea, but he could still become one again in the future – and he’s also the best striker available on the transfer market this summer.
Osimhen has serious injury concerns and probably isn’t worth the 130 million euro release clause that Napoli have slapped on him, but just as Napoli want to wait in order to see if Chelsea are forced to reduce their asking price for Romelu Lukaku, the Blues could bluff about their lack of interest in Osimhen before signing him for half that price in August.
The reality is that only Arsenal and PSG are real competitors to Chelsea for Osimhen, and the Blues have an easier path to playing time for Osimhen.
Their only option at striker is Jackson, whom Osimhen would easily usurp. Arsenal could give Kai Havertz the first crack at the No. 9 job after his incredible second half of the season, while Gabriel Jesus remains an option.
PSG invested heavily in talented young strikers Randal Kolo Muani and Goncalo Ramos last season, and although Osimhen is clearly better than both of them, that’s a more significant investment in two players than Chelsea made in only Jackson.
So basically, if Chelsea want to sign a striker who led Serie A in goals in the 2022/23 season and can create danger out of nothing, they need to keep Osimhen on their transfer radar.
If he wants to push his way out of Napoli and join Chelsea, he could be the Blues’ to lose, especially since Napoli don’t have as firm of a grip on their No. 9 as they’d like the rest of the world to think.
Jonathan David, Lille
If Chelsea would prefer to spend quite a bit less on a striker, Jonathan David could be their next target and someone similar in quality and cost to Benjamin Sesko after the Slovenian star elected to spend another season in Leipzig.
David has been fantastic for a couple of seasons in Ligue 1 now, maintaining the newfound consistency he showed as a true breakout superstar in the French top flight in 2022/23.
The Canadian sensation scored 19 goals for Lille last season, building on his previous campaign of 24 goals. David uses his frame well to draw fouls and hold play up, and you’d imagine that with players like Cole Palmer and potentially Michael Olise around him, the 24-year-old could easily boost his four assists from the previous two seasons.
It’s unclear how much David could cost, but since Lille were asking for 60 million euros last summer and nobody bit, Chelsea could theoretically land the Canadian for cheaper than Benjamin Sesko’s 65 million euro release clause.
Victor Boniface, Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen made a number of smart purchases in the summer 2023 transfer window, with fullback Alex Grimaldo standing out as the best bargain as a free agent.
But in the long term, Victor Boniface could prove to be the best transfer investment, as the Bundesliga champions spent a mere 21.7 million euros to purchase the Nigerian standout.
Boniface missed some games due to injury but still ended up with 14 goals, 8 assists, and 2 dribbles completed per game as one of the most exhilarating strikers in world football.
Bayer Leverkusen probably don’t want to sell the promising 23-year-old just one summer after buying him, because they will be headed to the Champions League and know they can get even more value out of Boniface if he can get more than 18 starts next Bundesliga season.
Still, Boniface is so good that Chelsea need to monitor him this summer in case they can swing a proposal that convinces Leverkusen, though, again, it’s hard seeing the Blues having the same pull for Boniface without Champions League football.
At the very least, Boniface is an excellent longer-term target, given his proclivity for the exciting and his ability to translate those skills into an average of more than a goal contribution per start.
Lois Openda, RB Leipzig
Benjamin Sesko was on Chelsea’s minds before the star striker decided to stay in Leipzig, but the Red Bull-owned enterprise have another great, relatively young striker worth the Blues’ time.
Lois Openda, like Victor Boniface, only joined a top Bundesliga side a season ago, so Leipzig may want to wait before cashing in on the former Ligue 1 standout.
The 24-year-old now has a few seasons of quality football at the level of a top five league under his belt, with the 2023/24 campaign easily being his best.
Openda showed poacher instincts and also an ability to create chances from out of nowhere in transition, shining just as much as Boniface did in tight spaces.
With 24 goals and 7 assists, Openda was one of the most prolific all-around strikers in European football last season and arguably more impressive than Sesko because of his status as the main starter
If Leipzig are open to listening to offers for Openda with the intention of moving Sesko into the full-time starting role, then Chelsea should keep an open mind about the Belgian as a target.
Serhou Guirassy, Stuttgart
Yet another Bundesliga transfer target to watch at striker, Serhou Guirassy was the best of the bunch in the 2023/24 season, and the only thing that holds him back from a Chelsea perspective is his age at 28.
Guirassy was good in the 2022/23 season and helped Stuttgart avoid the drop, but from the moment the 2023/24 season kicked off, the Guinean international was downright sensational.
A legitimate Ballon d’Or candidate, Guirassy scored a stunning 28 goals for Die Schwaben, leading the line as Stuttgart defied the odds by qualifying for the Champions League.
Guirassy was the most well-rounded striker in the league besides the legendary Harry Kane, too, averaging around two fouls drawn and two key passes per game.
He may be older than the others, but Guirassy will also be cheaper, as he has a meager 17.5 million euro release clause in his contract with Stuttgart.
More importantly to Chelsea, Guirassy had, by far, the best numbers of any available transfer target. Victor Osimhen has the most talent and pedigree, but in the present, Guirassy has him beat in terms of productivity and costs a fraction of the price.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other major outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.