Chelsea opened talks over Granit Xhaka, but Sunderland currently holds the key to the transfer
Chelsea has, according to the latest British and German reports, opened an unexpected transfer story involving Granit Xhaka, Sunderland's captain and one of the most important midfielders of last season's Premier League. Sky Sports reported that the London club is showing interest in the Swiss international, while The Guardian states that Xhaka has been identified as a player whom Chelsea's new coach Xabi Alonso knows well from their shared spell at Bayer Leverkusen. According to reports citing Sky Germany and Florian Plettenberg, Xhaka has reportedly already reached a verbal agreement on personal terms with Chelsea, but such an agreement by itself does not mean that the transfer is close to completion. The decisive part of the deal remains an agreement between the clubs, and according to the available information Sunderland do not want to sell a player who has captain status, an important contract and a major role in the plans for the new season. For that reason, the whole story is currently in a sensitive phase of interest, contacts and price assessment, without official confirmation that an agreement has been reached between Chelsea and Sunderland.
Why Chelsea moved specifically for Xhaka
Chelsea's interest cannot be viewed only through the prism of another name on the summer wish list. According to Chelsea's official announcement, Xabi Alonso takes over the team on 1 July 2026 on the basis of a four-year contract, and the arrival of a new coach naturally raises the question of changing the profile of players in the dressing room and on the pitch. The Guardian writes that Alonso wants to add experience to Chelsea's squad, and Xhaka emerges in that context as a logical candidate because under his leadership at Leverkusen he had one of the most stable phases of his career. For a club that finished the 2025/26 season outside the European places, according to the official Premier League table in tenth position, Xhaka would represent a different type of reinforcement from the usual long-term projects and young investments. In his case, Chelsea would, if they moved towards a formal offer, be buying authority, tactical discipline, Premier League experience and a player who already understands Alonso's requirements in midfield.
Xhaka was, under Alonso at Leverkusen, an important part of the team that changed the perception of the club and wrote one of the most recognisable seasons of the modern Bundesliga. The Bundesliga officially recorded that Bayer Leverkusen in the 2023/24 season became the first team to finish an entire Bundesliga season unbeaten, while winning the domestic title and the German cup. Xhaka in that team was not only a technical stabiliser but also a player who, through his passing rhythm, positioning and communication, helped Alonso implement the structure of the game. That is precisely why Chelsea's potential interest is not surprising from a coaching perspective, although it is unexpected given Xhaka's age, contract and importance to Sunderland. In transfer terms, this is a player who would not be brought in as a long-term market investment, but as an immediately usable pillar for changing the team's dynamics.
Sunderland have a sporting and symbolic reason for resistance
Sunderland's stance, according to The Guardian's report, is currently clear: the club are determined to keep Xhaka and do not want to open the door to a quick departure. Such a position has firm sporting logic. Sunderland, according to the official Premier League table, finished the season in seventh place with 54 points, ahead of Chelsea, and secured qualification for the Europa League. Sunderland's official announcement further highlights that Xhaka played 34 Premier League matches in the 2025/26 season, scored one goal and registered six assists, while the club described him as one of the league's standout midfielders. For a team that had only just returned to the top English tier and immediately secured European football, losing their captain before the new season would be more than an ordinary squad problem.
Sunderland signed Xhaka in July 2025 from Bayer Leverkusen, and the club confirmed in an official announcement that he had signed a three-year contract at the Stadium of Light. Just two weeks after his arrival he was named captain, which shows how quickly he earned the trust of the dressing room and the coaching staff. Given that his contract runs until 2028, Sunderland are not in a situation in which they have to sell urgently because of an expiring contract. Sky Sports reported at the time of his arrival that the transfer was worth around £17.3 million, including the initial fee and add-ons, which means that in the event of a serious offer the club could seek a significant return, but money is not the only criterion. Ahead of a season with European commitments, Sunderland must assess whether selling their captain would weaken the foundation of the project that surprised the Premier League last season.
A verbal agreement is not the same as a completed transfer
The most striking part of the story concerns the claim that Xhaka, according to reports linked to Sky Germany and Florian Plettenberg, has reached a verbal agreement on personal terms with Chelsea. Such information increases the seriousness of the interest because it suggests that the player does not reject the possibility of returning to London, where he played for Arsenal for years. Still, in the football market, personal terms are often only one of the prerequisites, not proof that a transfer will be completed. The Times reported that Chelsea are considering a move for Xhaka, but also that a formal offer to Sunderland has not yet been confirmed. Until the transfer fee, payment structure and position of the current club are agreed, the transfer remains an open but unconfirmed possibility.
In that context, the economic side of the deal is also important. Xhaka is 33 and turns 34 in September, so Chelsea would have to assess what amount makes sense to spend on a player who could bring short-term stability, but would not have the resale value that younger reinforcements have. The Guardian states that Chelsea are unlikely to be prepared to pay a very high fee for a player of his age. Sunderland, on the other hand, can count on the fact that Xhaka is captain, that he has two years left on his contract and that he was one of the symbols of qualification for Europe. That is why the negotiating positions of the two clubs do not currently match: Chelsea may see a rational opportunity, but Sunderland can demand a price that reflects the sporting value of the player, not only his market value.
The Alonso factor changes the weight of the whole story
Xabi Alonso has a proven functional relationship with Xhaka from their time at Leverkusen, which gives this interest greater weight than an ordinary rumour. At Leverkusen, Xhaka played in a system that required precise movement between the lines, control of tempo and the ability to calm the team after opposition pressure. Alonso got far more from him in that role than from a classic defensive or central midfielder: Xhaka was an organiser of rhythm, a corrective element in positioning and an extension of the coach in phases when the match was being decided. If Alonso is now trying to rebuild part of that structure at Chelsea, it is clear why a player of that profile would be attractive to him. The question, however, is whether that sporting logic can fit into the club's financial policy and into the reality of negotiations with Sunderland.
Chelsea have in recent seasons often been linked with heavy investment in younger players, but the arrival of a new coach can change the balance between potential and experience. Xhaka could, in such a concept, help with the daily stabilisation of the midfield line, but also with passing requirements on to younger teammates. For a team that, according to the official Premier League table, finished the season with 52 points, two fewer than Sunderland, the problem is not only the quality of individuals but also the consistency of performance. An experienced midfielder would not solve structural weaknesses on his own, but he could help establish clearer principles in possession, playing out of pressure and managing the tempo of matches. These are precisely the areas in which Xhaka under Alonso at Leverkusen built the reputation of a player whom coaches can trust.
What a departure would mean for Sunderland
For Sunderland, selling Xhaka would have a direct effect on the dressing room, tactical balance and the impression of ambition. In the 2025/26 season, the club used their return to the Premier League for a leap that few expected, and the official Premier League confirmed that Sunderland and Bournemouth, as sixth and seventh, secured the Europa League. At such a moment, keeping key players becomes a message that the club do not want merely to make one-off use of a good season, but to build a sustainable project. Xhaka, as captain, was the face of that transformation, and his importance does not stem only from statistics. In a team that will have to distribute its strength between the domestic championship and European matches, an experienced midfielder accustomed to playing under pressure has a value that is difficult to replace quickly.
If Sunderland were nevertheless to accept an offer, they would have to find a replacement who can immediately take responsibility in midfield. That is not a simple task because Xhaka combines several elements that the market rarely offers in one player: Premier League experience, experience of European finals, leadership status and the ability to organise play. The club could earn money, but at the same time would risk destabilisation ahead of a season that carries greater expectations than the previous one. That is why it is understandable that, according to the available reports, Sunderland are in no rush and currently show no intention of making Chelsea's job easier. In negotiations of this kind, it is often decisive not only how much the buyer wants the player, but how irreplaceable the seller considers him.
A transfer that depends on three decisions
The further development of the story will depend on three key questions. First, Chelsea must decide whether to turn their interest into a formal offer that would be serious enough for Sunderland to open negotiations. Second, Sunderland must assess whether there is a sum that can compensate for the loss of their captain in sporting and symbolic terms. Third, Xhaka must weigh staying in a team where he has leader status and European football against the possibility of working again with the coach with whom he reached his peak at Leverkusen. According to the information currently available, only one part of that triangle has been partially clarified: Chelsea are interested, the player has reportedly not closed the door, but Sunderland still hold the key.
That is why this deal cannot be described as a completed transfer, but as serious interest with several open variables. If Chelsea offer a sum that Sunderland would find difficult to refuse, the story could quickly move from the contact phase into concrete negotiations. If the London club conclude that the price is too high for a player entering the final years of his career, Xhaka could remain the central figure of Sunderland's European project. In both scenarios, it is clear why his name has become one of the most interesting in the early part of the summer market: he is a player whose value lies not only in the transfer fee, but in the trust he inspires in the coach, teammates and the club that currently does not want to lose him.
Sources:
- The Guardian – report on Chelsea's interest in Granit Xhaka, the role of Xabi Alonso and Sunderland's stance (link)
- The Times – report that Chelsea are considering a move for Xhaka and that a formal offer to Sunderland has not been confirmed (link)
- Sky Sports – transfer live blog with information that Chelsea are interested in Xhaka (link)
- Chelsea FC – official announcement on the appointment of Xabi Alonso as manager from 1 July 2026 (link)
- Sunderland AFC – official announcement on the arrival of Granit Xhaka from Bayer Leverkusen and a three-year contract (link)
- Sunderland AFC – official announcement on Granit Xhaka being named captain (link)
- Sunderland AFC – official data on Xhaka's appearances, goal, assists and Sunderland's qualification for the Europa League (link)
- Premier League – official table for the 2025/26 season and European qualification of clubs (link)
- Bundesliga – official text on Bayer Leverkusen as the first unbeaten team in a Bundesliga season (link)