Exclusive: Expert reveals how previous flop signing made Chelsea unsure about Serie A star

Chelsea were unsure about signing Dusan Vlahovic this summer due to their previous experience with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, according to CaughtOffside columnist Ben Jacobs.

Although Chelsea admire some of the Serbia international’s qualities, it seems the Blues weren’t keen on making another big investment in an established central striker after their experiences with Aubameyang last season.

The Gabon international ended up being a major flop for Chelsea after his move from Barcelona, failing to produce the kind of form we saw from him during his time into the Premier League with Arsenal.

Vlahovic, meanwhile, looks like he could have been a superb signing for Chelsea after the start we’ve seen from him with Juventus this season, and with Nicolas Jackson hardly looking the real deal upfront in Mauricio Pochettino’s side so far.

“Chelsea were offered a number of players this summer that they turned down. This is normal for any big club, but especially one that’s spent £1bn over the past three windows. Sellers and agents will always target an active club in the market,” Jacobs said.

“Although Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic was a name Chelsea had tracked over multiple windows they never seriously entertained a swap deal for Romelu Lukaku, who is now at Roma. This was because Mauricio Pochettino wasn’t on board. Chelsea would have had to pay €35-40m in addition to Lukaku, but I understand it wasn’t the money that put off the club.

“Chelsea do admire many of Vlahovic’s qualities but had some concerns about his injury record. And, more importantly, they wanted to give priority to Nicolas Jackson and Armando Broja.

“I also think after signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in a bit of a panic last summer from Barcelona, Chelsea didn’t want to