Chelsea face 20-club Antonio Nusa transfer battle after £23m bid

Chelsea are monitoring winger Antonio Nusa, having had a £23million bid for the player rejected by Club Brugge on deadline day.

The Blues looked to steal a march on their transfer rivals by attempting to sign Norway's next potential superstar late in the summer window.

Nusa, 18, would only have joined Mauricio Pochettino’s first-team squad had Ian Maatsen or Conor Gallagher been sold. The option to send the player immediately back on loan to Brugge was also discussed between the two clubs.

Chelsea will face increased competition for Nusa in future transfer windows after the teenager made a name for himself by becoming the second-youngest goalscorer in Champions League history after netting in the 4-0 away win over FC Porto in the group stage last September.

The quick, skilful dribbler, who plays for Norway’s Under-21 side and is yet to be capped at senior international level, is currently being watched by at least 20 other clubs in one of Europe’s most heavily-scouted leagues for young talent.

Nusa has made 10 appearances for Brugge, managed for 12 games last season by Scott Parker, already this term, scoring in the 7-1 demolition of RWD Molenbeek in the Belgian top-flight and also helping Ronny Deila’s side into the Europa Conference League group stage.

He has four goals and three assists in total in 46 outings for the club since joining from Norwegian side Stabaek in the summer of 2021.