Here are the Chelsea morning headlines for Tuesday, August 25.
Abramovich u-turn over Havertz deal
Chelsea are on the verge of completing the signing of Kai Havertz from Bayer Leverkusen.
The Blues are set to wrap up a £90million deal for the Germany international after a change of opinion by Roman Abramovich.
Sky Sports report that Chelsea were previously hoping to negotiate Leverkusen’s asking price downwards, deeming £90m to be excessive in the current climate.
But the German side refused to budge and Chelsea have now agreed to meet their demands.
"I think basically what's happened is that Roman Abramovich has spotted an opportunity in the market," said reporter Kaveh Solhekol.
“He has seen that this is a great time if you've got a lot of money to spend money on world-class players because you're getting them a bit cheaper than you normally would. There had been question marks about Roman Abramovich - 'had he lost interest in Chelsea?'
"But from the outside looking in, it looks like Roman Abramovich is 100% committed to Chelsea."
Havertz deal explained
Chelsea are close to completing deals for Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell, in addition to the purchase of Havertz.
The Paris Saint-Germain centre-half and Leicester City left-back will bolster Frank Lampard’s defence, but it’s the Havertz deal that’s exciting Chelsea fans most.
The club have recently made a breakthrough in negotiations with Bayer Leverkusen, having been locked in discussions for weeks.
Although Chelsea have agreed to spend £90m on their leading transfer target, not all of that money will be paid up front.
According to Bild, the Blues will pay an initial fee of £72m followed by up to £18m in add-ons.
Half of the £18m is linked to how well Chelsea do in the Champions League during Havertz’s five-year contract, while the other half depends on how many titles the club win in that timeframe.
Blackman embarks on another loan
Chelsea goalkeeper Jamal Blackman will spend the 2020/21 season on loan at Rotherham United.
This is a familiar tale for the 26-year-old, whose spell in Yorkshire will be his eighth temporary switch away from Stamford Bridge.
Blackman is a Chelsea academy graduate but he’s yet to make a senior appearance for the club.
And after stints at Middlesbrough, Ostersund, Wycombe Wanderers, Sheffield United, Leeds United, Vitesse and Bristol Rovers, Rotherham will be his home for the next nine months.
