Chelsea in talks to sign Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck

Chelsea have opened talks over deals for two experienced England internationals, Brentford midfielder Jordan Henderson and Brighton forward Danny Welbeck, as Xabi Alonso looks to add know-how to a squad built largely around youth.

Henderson, 36, has a year remaining on his Brentford contract but the Bees are willing to let him leave on a free transfer. Welbeck, 35, has emerged as a target after a strong campaign at the Amex, and there is understood to be genuine optimism on Chelsea’s side that a deal can be struck.

Welbeck’s resurgent season

Welbeck scored a career-high 13 Premier League goals in 37 appearances for Brighton last season, taking his overall tally to 51 goals in 201 matches since arriving from Watford in 2020. He signed a 12-month contract extension in March, meaning his current deal runs to the end of the 2026-27 season, but Brighton are understood to be open to sanctioning his exit for the right offer. The club have declined to comment publicly on the interest.

Now in his 18th season as a professional since making his Manchester United debut as a 17-year-old, Welbeck has made more than 500 club appearances and won 42 England caps, despite lengthy injury lay-offs that have cost him roughly two-and-a-half years of football since a serious knee problem in 2016. He was overlooked by Thomas Tuchel for this year’s World Cup squad, with Ivan Toney preferred instead.

Henderson’s World Cup heartbreak

Henderson made 34 appearances in all competitions for Brentford last season after joining from Ajax, and made one substitute appearance for England at the World Cup before breaking his arm in a fall over advertising hoardings while celebrating the team’s last-16 win over Mexico.

Chelsea’s pursuit of two players in their mid-thirties marks a departure from the club’s recent recruitment strategy, which has been heavily focused on signing young talent. Influential owner Behdad Eghbali indicated in April that the model needed a “tweak”, and Alonso is understood to have given the go-ahead for talks over Welbeck specifically.

Knock-on effect up front

Any deal for Welbeck would add further uncertainty to Chelsea’s forward line, where Joao Pedro is regarded as first-choice after scoring 15 league goals last season. Liam Delap, who joined from Ipswich for £30m last year, is increasingly expected to leave after struggling to establish himself, while Nicolas Jackson, back from a loan spell at Bayern Munich, has attracted interest from Aston Villa.

Marc Guiu, valued by the club at around £25m, is available for either a permanent sale or a loan, and there is also uncertainty surrounding Emmanuel Emegha, who arrived from sister club Strasbourg only recently. The moves come after Chelsea broke their transfer record to sign Morgan Rogers for £117m, alongside the addition of full-back Marco Palestra, as Alonso continues to reshape his squad ahead of the new season.

Read more: Chelsea hijack Arsenal’s £117m Morgan Rogers deal as Gunners turn to Tzolis

Sources

• BBC Sport
• The Mirror
• The Independent

This is an independent report written from the facts across the sources named above.