Chelsea aim to sign Mike Maignan "by hook or by crook" as prepare to launch a fresh bid

Chelsea are still pushing to sign Mike Maignan despite initial setbacks. (Image credits - Heute, License Details)

Chelsea were once again left exposed between the sticks as the Blues were thrashed by Flamengo in the Club World Cup group stage clash.

Enzo Maresca’s team looked like the firm favourites to top Group C, having won the UEFA Conference League recently and booming with confidence. However, the disastrous loss has prompted the club to look even more strongly for an upgrade in the goalkeeper position to replace Robert Sanchez, whose inconsistency has begun to frustrate the Chelsea management.

As per reports, the Blues are still interested in AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan and are set to prepare a second bid for the Frenchman when the CWC finishes.

Chelsea are planning to bid around £20m including add-ons, which would be more than enough to seal the deal with financially struggling AC Milan, who rejected the Blues' first bid for the star goalkeeper. 

Why is signing Maignan and Hugo Ekitike a priority for Chelsea?

Chelsea are in dire need of a new striker and a goalkeeper, as their current first-choice players in these positions, Nicholas Jackson and Robert Sanchez, respectively, have been error-prone on a consistent basis, which has been hurting the team passively.

While the Blues have signed Liam Delap recently to cater to their striker problems, the need for another one seems imminent after Jackson's "disaster class" against Flamengo.

The 24-year-old was shown a straight red during Friday's clash, which led to the team's horrible loss. This once again showcased Jackson's irresponsible behaviour on the pitch, something which has been observed on quite a few occasions over the course of the last two seasons.

On top of that, new signing Liam Delap, who is still inexperienced, will require ample amount of time to settle in, which has further prompted the London giants to go for Hugo Ekitike, who is a proven goal-scorer.

On the other hand, in the no. 1 spot, Robert Sanchez has made a negative impression for making costly errors for Chelsea on multiple occasions. As per Opta, no goalkeeper made more errors leading to a shot on goal than Sanchez in the Premier League last season.

Therefore, the Blues' management are desperately aiming to sign Ekitike, who had a stellar goal scoring season at Eintracht Frankfurt and Mike Maignan, who is already a proven player in the top division, earning more than 300 caps for AC Milan and Lille.