Musiala transfer price sky rockets as Chelsea get $161m lesson after missing out

Chelsea transfer news: The Blues have been linked with a move for former academy star Jamal Musiala in the final days of the window but it would come at a mighty cost.

Chelsea's error-filled transfer dealings of the past have been well documented. Allowing Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah to leave 10 years ago cost them millions in future deals that failed to live up to expectations whilst the duo continue to shatter Premier League records.

Romelu Lukaku, dare we speak his name, was another that cost Chelsea plenty as they loaned and sold him on consistently only to watch their own forwards sink under the pressure. Declan Rice was a slightly different case in that he was allowed to leave as a 14-year-old before his true talents were revealed.

One talent that perhaps transcends them all - maybe not De Bruyne or Salah at this stage - is Jamal Musiala. The Bayern Munich star swapped Cobham for Bavaria in 2019, heading back to the country of his birth, and hasn't looked back since. He is one of the rising stars of the world game and has been on a similar path to Jude Bellingham in recent years.

Last season in the Bundesliga he was one of just two players to get into double figures for both goals and assists, only Randal Kolo Muani had more contributions than him with 26.

The 12 strikes was double what he had achieved in the previous three years combined whilst the same can be said for his assists. Although Champions League progression was cut-short he still played a key part in Bayern's team and kept his place under both Julian Nagelsmann and Thomas Tuchel.

During what was a relatively bleak season for the German giants it was Musiala that secured the title with a late goal on the final day of the season and kept knitting together attacks with his flair and exuberance. This will not come as any sort of surprise to those that watched him in his youth days at Chelsea.

Musiala was one of the brightest sparks of a talented group of players. By the time he was 18 his estimated transfer value, according to Transfermarkt, was already more than £10million ($12m), though in reality it would have taken more than that to get him away from Bayern due to his standing and promise.

His rise through the ranks at Germany's top club says it all about his skill, quality and mentality. A similar trajectory for his transfer worth agrees. 12 months after his first team debut his value had shot up to £42million ($53m), last summer it was £68million ($85m) and now it rests at £95million ($120m).

According to CIES Football Observatory that is doing him some disservice. They have him at one of just three 2003 born players valued at over £128million ($161m). Bellingham leads the way as the most expensive and Gavi is ranked as Musiala's equal in this metric.

Of all players on the planet only 11 can match Musiala's value at this stage and they include Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr and Erling Haaland. It's an esteemed club.

Musiala is on a list of talented attackers including Ansu Fati, Emile Smith Rowe and Ferran Torres being looked at as a bumper addition to Mauricio Pochettino's squad. With injuries to Christopher Nkunku and Carney Chukwuemeka leaving things depleted and Musiala posing as a versatile option, the fit is certainly there.

Whether Musiala is seen as an opportunistic buy, one that cannot be turned down or just as a last, ambitious roll of the dice for this crazy summer is unclear. What is obvious is that he would be at least three times more expensive than the previous options being looked at.

Although Musiala is currently injured, picking up a hamstring strain in the opening game of the season, it is hoped that he will be back before long. There is no suggesting that Bayern want to sell him but it has been said that the player would certainly consider a return to the club if a deal was on the table.