Chelsea Push for Manu Koné as Sánchez Nears Como Loan
Chelsea have made a €60m offer for Roma midfielder Manu Koné while goalkeeper Robert Sánchez moves closer to a Como loan.
Daniele Quaranta
Updated on 01 September 2026
Chelsea Agree Personal Terms With Manu Koné As Roma Talks Advance
Chelsea have agreed personal terms with Roma midfielder Manu Koné and have submitted an offer now reported at €65m, with the two clubs pushing to finalise a deal before deadline day closes.
The Premier League club are separately reported to have reached a verbal agreement to send goalkeeper Robert Sánchez to Como on loan.
The two deals are at different stages. The Koné move has progressed to personal terms with the club-to-club agreement still being finalised, while the Sánchez move has been reported as a verbal agreement between the clubs.
Why Chelsea Are Pushing For Manu Koné
Chelsea’s interest in Koné is tied directly to Enzo Fernández’s expected exit. The Argentine is closing in on a club-record move to Manchester City, reported at around €140m, leaving a gap in midfield that Chelsea want to fill before the window shuts.
Personal terms have already been agreed with the 25-year-old, and Chelsea are now working to close out the agreement with Roma.
Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini addressed the speculation on Monday evening, after his side’s 4-0 win over Lecce. “I know nothing about it,” he said. “I know the owners do not want to sell. I don’t know who approached us, but we have not received any formal offers for him.”
Since then, Chelsea have moved to make their interest formal, with the fee rising from an initial €60m to a reported €65m as talks have progressed.
Fee And Player Structure
The reported valuation has climbed to €65m as Chelsea look to meet Roma’s asking price. No add-ons, sell-on clause or contract length have been reported.
A player-inclusive structure has also been discussed. Chelsea are said to be open to sending winger Jamie Gittens to Roma on loan, with the Giallorossi looking for a new attacking winger on deadline day.
Gittens has been on Roma’s radar for several weeks, although the clubs previously failed to reach an agreement.
Deadline Pressure And Unresolved Details
Koné made 37 appearances across all competitions for Roma last season, scoring two goals, and enhanced his reputation further with a strong 2026 World Cup campaign for France.
Roma’s interest in Gittens is another element of the discussions around Koné, with the loan seen as a way to soften the blow of losing a key midfielder this late in the window.
The reporting doesn’t confirm a formal Roma acceptance or a scheduled medical. Personal terms with the player are agreed, but the deal remains an advanced negotiation between the clubs rather than a completed transfer.
Chelsea’s Sánchez Move To Como
Separately, Como have reached a verbal agreement to sign Sánchez on loan from Chelsea. Fabrizio Romano, The Athletic and Gianluca Di Marzio are also cited as confirming that the deal has been secured.
The move is expected to be a dry loan without an option to buy, with Sánchez set to replace Como’s current goalkeeper Tornqvist, who is moving on to Monza.
Sánchez had been Chelsea’s first-choice goalkeeper for most of last season before the arrival of Emiliano Martínez pushed him down the pecking order.
What Happens Next
Chelsea and Roma would still need to finalise the club-to-club side of the Koné agreement before the window closes, with any Gittens loan and a medical yet to be confirmed.
For Sánchez, the reported verbal agreement has yet to be formally completed as an official loan, though all the reported sourcing points toward the move going through before deadline day ends.
Daniele Quaranta
Daniele Quaranta grew up in Bergamo watching Atalanta from the curva nord with his father, and that upbringing gave him a deep appreciation for the tactical and emotional layers that Italian football carries unlike any other league in the world. He has spent years studying the game through a decidedly Italian lens, paying close attention to how formations evolve across seasons, how managers adapt under pressure, and what historical patterns reveal about the modern game.
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