Chelsea defender transfer targets: Three options as Enzo Maresca eyes new centre-back signing

Chelsea's defensive plans heading into the 2025-26 Premier League season were shaken by the serious ACL injury to Levi Colwill, meaning Enzo Maresca will have to contend without arguably his main centre-back for a large part of the new campaign.

The Blues were further weakened by the injury to Tosin Adarabioyo ahead of their opening-day 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace, and Maresca has urged the club to delve into the transfer market for defensive reinforcements in the coming days.

While it will be seen if Chelsea answer Maresca's calls and deliver a new central defender, the Blues have been linked with numerous options, and here, Sports Mole takes a look at three reported targets.

Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace)

Guehi has been one of the most hotly-talked about central defenders in recent seasons, with the Crystal Palace central defender consistently impressing for the Eagles, while he was arguably England's best player during their run to the 2024 European Championship final.

The Crystal Palace captain has been linked with the likes of Newcastle United and Liverpool during that time, but there have also been persistent talks of a potential return to Chelsea, where the central defender had been since 2007 before his departure to the Eagles in July 2021.

Guehi would be an ideal option for Chelsea, with pre-existing knowledge of the club due to his youth career for the Blues, while the Eagles captain is also a capable ball-playing defender that can equally play on either side of a back two or in any of the three positions in a three-defender system.

Maresca has stated that Colwill's loss is particularly harmful as the defender is the central figure when playing out from the back, with a strong ability to punch the ball through opposition lines, and this is an attribute and trait that Guehi would be able to comfortably replace, while the defender could strike up a formidable partnership upon Colwill's return.

Crystal Palace owner Steve Parish has admitted that Guehi could be sold this summer, and while Liverpool currently appear to be leading the race for his signature, a late Chelsea move could still be on the cards.

Antonio Silva (Benfica)

Silva has emerged in recent seasons as one of Europe's brightest young defensive prospects, with the 21-year-old making him one of the most highly sought-after central defenders.

Silva has been a consistent player for Benfica since 2022-23, playing over 42 matches across all competitions in all of the last three seasons, and the central defender has also broken into the Portuguese national team with 17 appearances in that time.

The defender's strengths are undeniably in his impressive ball-playing abilities, recording a 91.5% passing accuracy in Liga Portugal in 2022-23, 93.1% in 2023-24 and 88.4% in 2024-25, ranking him among the top central defenders for that aspect of his game.

At just 21 years old, Silva fits Chelsea's clear transfer strategy of signing players with both the immediate ability to make an impact and significant potential to evolve and progress into a better player, and a deal could well take place before the transfer window deadline.

Piero Hincapie (Bayer Leverkusen)

Hincapie was heavily linked with Chelsea in the early stages of the summer transfer window, and give his similar profile to Colwill, the Bayer Leverkusen defender would potentially make for the smartest signing ahead of the 2025 transfer deadline.

Hincapie is a left-footed central defender that is able to play both centrally and in wider defensive roles, meaning he could comfortably cover Colwill's absence in the middle of Chelsea's defence when in possession, while he could even feature in place of Marc Cucurella if the need arose.

His performances for Bayer Leverkusen in recent campaigns have demonstrated both his impressive defensive ability and also his strength on the ball, and at just 23-years-old, Hincapie fits Chelsea's transfer strategy and could serve as a brilliant option to replace Colwill.

However, Hincapie could be the most expensive option on this list, with Bayer Leverkusen expected to demand upwards of £50m for his departure.