Danny Welbeck is on the verge of joining Chelsea after Brighton & Hove Albion granted the striker permission to undergo a medical at Stamford Bridge.

The 35-year-old is expected to travel to Hong Kong next week to join Chelsea's pre-season camp, with a two-year contract awaiting his signature.

Alonso targets experience alongside youth

The transfer forms a central part of new manager Xabi Alonso's strategy to bring seasoned professionals into a Chelsea squad that has been the youngest in the Premier League over the past two seasons — a factor widely seen as contributing to their inability to mount consistent title challenges.

At the end of a difficult 2024–25 season in which Chelsea finished 10th and lifted no silverware, co-owner Behdad Eghbali acknowledged that the club's recruitment model required a "tweak."

The response has been swift. Chelsea have made an offer to Sunderland for midfielder Granit Xhaka, 34, who won the Bundesliga title alongside Alonso at Bayer Leverkusen in 2024. Talks are also ongoing with Brentford over a deal for midfielder Jordan Henderson, 36.

Defensively, centre-back Maxence Lacroix has agreed a six-year deal to join from Crystal Palace, pending an official announcement. The club have also secured the signing of 21-year-old full-back Marco Palestra from Atalanta.

Morgan Rogers, who arrived from Aston Villa earlier this month in a club-record £117 million deal, brings a degree of maturity at 24 despite his relative youth, while Dutch striker Emmanuel Emegha — signed from sister club Strasbourg this summer — could also remain in the first-team picture.

Welbeck's record and Chelsea's striking options

Welbeck brings considerable Premier League pedigree. Formerly of Manchester United and Arsenal, the striker has scored 90 goals in 400 top-flight appearances. He is Brighton & Hove Albion's all-time leading Premier League scorer after joining the club on a free transfer from Watford in 2021.

His arrival would hand Chelsea six senior strikers, with Alonso understood to be building his attack around Welbeck and Joao Pedro. Nicolas Jackson, Liam Delap, and Marc Guiu are among those who could depart on a permanent transfer or loan deal as the club reshapes its forward line.