Journalist Simon Phillips has claimed that Chelsea are going to approach this transfer window in a different way to how they have done recently.
He told his Substack that the Blues will now be opening themselves up to signing a different type of player this summer.
Chelsea spent big again in the previous summer transfer window, even smashing the recently set club record on a deal to sign Moises Caicedo.
Chelsea likely to spend big again this summer
With the likes of Romeo Lavia, Christopher Nkunku and Cole Palmer all joining the club too, it was clear to see the method behind the madness.
The aim was to sign young players, with it widely being reported that the rule was set at bringing in players under the age of 25.
This saw them miss out on the opportunity to bring in a number of players who made the move to fellow top sides last summer, including James Maddison who ended up at Tottenham.
Chelsea to scrap Under-25 rule
Phillips has claimed though that Chelsea are looking to alter this from now, opening them up to a whole new avenue of potential signings.
He said: “As plans ramp up for the summer transfer window, I understand that the ‘U25 rule’ that Chelsea had in place will now be scrapped going forward.
“The rule basically meant that Chelsea only looked towards players who were younger, 25 or under – exactly what it says on the tin.
“But now, two sources have confirmed to me that they will no longer be following this as gospel. However, the general strategy IS to have a young squad and they will still be looking at younger players.
“But the key difference is, that if a player they want to sign happens to be 26, 27, 28, or even higher, they will still be pushing for them. Basically, there is going to be no actual rules anymore, but the thinking is to still have a young squad.”
This could present an opportunity for the club to push for the signing of one player to come in and play up front in particular.
Ivan Toney is expected to be on the move at the end of this campaign, with Chelsea being linked to the signing of him for more than a year now.
It is likely that they make a move to bring in a striker at the end of the season, although it feels unlikely at this point that they go as high price wise as they likely would need for the addition of someone like Victor Osimhen.
With Premier League experience under his belt, Toney could end up being the best bit of business the club could do this summer.
