Chelsea and Manchester United have made contact over a deal to sign Croatian international attacking midfielder Martin Baturina from Como, according to CaughtOffside.
Como have enjoyed a meteoric rise since their promotion to the Italian top flight in 2024. Within such a short span, they have finished fourth, reached the Coppa Italia semi-finals, and are currently making remarkable strides in the UEFA Champions League with a 4-1 thumping of Manchester United and a 9-1 win over Lens, the highlight of their campaign so far.
One reason for their surge since 2024 is the excellent coaching of Cesc Fabregas and a reputable recruitment process that has brought in exciting talents, including Nico Paz and Jacobo Ramon, who are drawing interest from several clubs.
The latest player making waves is Baturina, who signed for Como in the summer of 2025 from 26-time Croatian champions GNK Dinamo Zagreb, contributing 19 goal contributions.
In the ongoing campaign, he has netted five goals and provided two assists, and his form is now catching the eye of several clubs.
This is according to CaughtOffside, which claims that Chelsea and Man Utd have made contact over a deal to sign Baturina from Como.
Battle
The report adds that Como are keen on retaining the 23-year-old and will only listen to offers starting from £66m, with United and Chelsea already in talks over the potential transfer of the Croatian, who is also of keen interest to Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig.
Providing more detail on the situation, the Daily Briefing‘s Mark Brus, via CaughtOffside, revealed that Baturina is admired by the Premier League duo, with talks already underway, but there is a gap in valuation.
He said, ‘Baturina is well-liked by the recruitment staff of Chelsea and Man United.’
‘They’ve been pushing for this deal for a while, and early discussions have taken place with Como. There’s definitely the sense that they’d sell for the right price, but we’re a long way from an agreement, as there’s at least a €20m gap in valuation between the parties at the moment.’
United could do with more quality firepower…
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