Timo Werner to Chelsea: Germany ace to sacrifice Champions League football with RB Leipzig so he can join Blues in July
RB Leipzig may not be able to call upon star striker Timo Werner when their Champions League campaign resumes in August - as he wants to move to Chelsea in July!
The Blues appear to have all but wrapped up the signing of Germany international Werner, with a £53million transfer set to be completed over the coming weeks.
He scored 19 goals last season and has hit another 31 in all competitions this term to further enhance his reputation as one of the finest young scorers in European football.
Liverpool were long linked with Werner as Jurgen Klopp is known to be a big fan of his compatriot, but Chelsea stole in and Frank Lampard will be able to call upon the 24-year-old next season.
And, according to the latest reports, Werner is so determined to establish himself in the Chelsea squad he will willingly sacrifice playing in the latter stages of this season's Champions League with Leipzig.
claim Werner will see out the Bundesliga campaign - which ends on June 27 - and immediately move to London so he is with Chelsea by the start of July.
Given the Champions League quarter-finals are expected to start in August - with a Lisbon-hosted 12-day mini tournament to complete the competition - this means Werner will miss out on playing all Leipzig's remaining European matches.
Whether the striker will be allowed to register for Chelsea before the transfer window officially opens remains to be seen, though discussions have been held to allow Premier League clubs to re-register their 25-man squads throughout the completion of the top-flight campaign.
Chelsea resume their season on Sunday with a trip to relegation contenders Aston Villa, with the Blues hoping to tighten their grasp on a possible top four finish.