Chelsea face competition to sign Liverpool midfielder who will be out of contract in the summer

Chelsea face competition from London rivals to sign Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita

According to 90min (h/t Express), Chelsea will face competition from London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur for the signature of Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita.

Keita is out of contract at Anfield at the end of this season, making him a free agent this coming June. From January 1 onwards, the Guinea international can speak to clubs for a pre-contract agreement.

Although the former RB Leipzig midfielder has a lot of talent, his injury record is horrendous, to say the least. Since arriving in the summer of 2018 till the end of the 2021/22 season, Keita has missed a total of 64 games due to various injury issues. That amounts to an average of missing 16 games per season (Transfermarkt).

It gets worse though, as the midfielder is yet to play a game this season due to a serious hamstring injury. So, he has 15 games in this campaign already.

Not sure Chelsea would want to go that route when they start to reinforce their midfield. No disrespect to the player, but he would probably spend more time on a treatment table than on the pitch at Stamford Bridge.

It is evident that the Blues are looking at options to add bodies and substance to the central midfield department. N’Golo Kante (31) and Jorginho (30) are in the same situation as Keita and they also haven’t signed an extension yet. The former is out until New Year anyway and has had multiple injury issues which could hinder his contract getting chances.

More Chelsea News:

• Transfer News: Kevin Campbell tips Chelsea to sign Cristiano Ronaldo on loan in January
• Chelsea receive possible encouragement from Frenkie de Jong over a January move
• Report: Chelsea winger Christian Pulisic will push for January exit

They have been linked with Frenkie de Jong for a possible January move. While the Declan Rice links won’t go away. So, rather than wasting time on Keita, it would be great if the club does its best to sign either de Jong or Rice if the opportunity does arise.