Henderson Becomes Chelsea's 10th Summer Signing as Scalvini and Chalobah Dominate Rumour Mill

Chelsea have added another senior face to the squad, confirming Jordan Henderson on a free transfer from Brentford. The England international arrived after Xabi Alonso made it clear he wanted more experience in the dressing room. Henderson is Chelsea's 10th signing of the summer, following Danny Welbeck, who completed his move to Stamford Bridge last week. The club are also monitoring Giorgio Scalvini, though they have competition. The 22-year-old Atalanta defender missed the European Championship because of an ACL injury two summers ago, but he rebuilt his fitness and made 30 appearances in all competitions last season. Atalanta are asking for €49m, with Newcastle reportedly preparing an opening bid of €39m. Tottenham have also been linked but already invested in a centre-back this summer by signing Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton; they could revisit the position if Cristiano Romero leaves. Alonso, meanwhile, is said to want to offload five of Chelsea's centre-backs, which would create space for Scalvini. Outgoing business is also progressing. Trevoh Chalobah is set to join FC Como after the Serie A side agreed a deal worth €30m guaranteed plus €6m in add-ons. Chelsea had been holding out for around €35m, but Como gradually improved their offer. The package has been verbally accepted and includes a sell-on clause in Chelsea's favour. Benoit Badiashile could also be heading to Italy. According to L'Équipe, Chelsea are very close to finalising a loan move to Napoli with an option to buy. The French defender was left out of the club's pre-season tour of Australia and Asia as the exit is prepared. He managed only 16 appearances last season, with his final Premier League game coming on 31 January against West Ham United, when he was substituted at half-time. Crystal Palace, in the meantime, want Axel Disasi as the replacement for Maxence Lacroix, who joined Chelsea earlier in the window. Disasi is Palace's number one target, although it remains unclear whether the move would be permanent or on loan. There is also interest from Italian clubs. Disasi spent six months on loan at West Ham last season before the club was relegated. Late last week, Mykhailo Mudryk was officially cleared to play again. The Ukrainian winger was provisionally suspended in 2024 after meldonium was found in his system and initially received a four-year ban in 2026. He denied knowingly using a banned substance and appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The case was resolved in his favour after WADA changed its technical guidance on the concentration of meldonium detected.