Chelsea Transfer News: Marco Amelia Deal Imminent, John Terry Rumours Emerge

Chelsea look poised to complete a deal for former Milan goalkeeper Marco Amelia, as Jose Mourinho seeks to bolster his options between the sticks.

As reported by David Amoyal on behalf of GianlucaDiMarzio.com, Amelia has been training with the Blues recently and the champions have been “impressed with his efforts.” It’s noted in the piece that Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho knows Amelia well after his time managing in Milan and that a deal could be finalised on Wednesday.

Matt Barlow of the MailOnline also reported that the 33-year-old has been joining the Blues in training and seems poised to sign on with the club as emergency cover. Here’s a look at what Amelia, who has nine caps for Italy, could offer at his very best:

Chelsea could certainly do with some additional reinforcements in goal. Asmir Begovic is currently the main man between the posts after the injury to Thibaut Courtois early on in the season and in the main, the Bosnia and Herzegovina international has performed well despite the Blues’ poor beginning to the season.

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Indeed, Begovic helped Chelsea keep the score down in their most recent loss, 2-1 to Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday night, as noted here by football writer Jake Cohen:

If he was to suffer an injury or suspension, the Blues would be in big trouble, with the untested Jamal Blackman currently third in the pecking order at Stamford Bridge. So it makes sense that Chelsea are targeting a goalkeeper to come in and provide cover, and Amelia, who is currently unattached, definitely fits the bill.

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The former Rossoneri man has great pedigree too, having been part of the World Cup-winning Italy squad in 2006. It’s a tremendous opportunity for him to rekindle his career after not playing a game in professional football since leaving Milan in 2014. Chelsea will be hoping he’s not needed, but at least Amelia will provide ample, experienced back-up if the worst does happen.

John Terry In Demand

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With John Terry’s contract at Chelsea due to expire at the end of the season there are a host of clubs sniffing around the Blues skipper, according to John Cross of the Daily Mirror.

He claims “several” clubs from China are willing to offer the centre-back a lucrative payday before he retires, while flush Turkish giants Fenerbahce are also rumoured to be interested. Terry has fallen out of favour at Chelsea this season and could feasibly sign with another team on a pre-contract from January onwards.

Despite falling down the pecking order in recent matches, Bleacher Report’s Daniel Tiluk doesn’t think the Chelsea captain should be written off quite yet:

It’s actually difficult to see why Mourinho has marginalised Terry as of late. The Blues have been poor at the back and after being the standout centre-half in the Premier League last season, you’d think it’d be a no-brainer for the Portuguese to get his captain back at the base of the team and organising a struggling set-up.

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As Liam Twomey of Goal noted here, at the moment, the alternatives selected by Mourinho don’t seem to be reaching similar heights to the skipper:

Terry will want to stay at Chelsea. The defender has forged a legendary reputation at Stamford Bridge and was immense in the Blues’ title triumph last season. However, if he’s not playing regular football, the prospect of a lucrative move away from the club he adores will begin to look more and more appealing.

In the short term, there certainly seems to be a role for Terry to play at Chelsea and Mourinho, you suspect, will integrate him back into the team after some hapless defensive showings from the Blues. Given his enormous, longstanding influence, keeping him at the club in some capacity, even as a coach, will surely be a priority for the manager as the season rumbles on.