Chelsea have been presented with a huge dilemma in the last few days of the transfer window after receiving a £27m offer for Gallagher, according to reports.
The midfielder has played in all four of Chelsea’s Premier League games this campaign so far and, in the absence of N’Golo Kante, started against Leeds and Leicester City.
But, Gallagher was sent off for two yellow cards inside the first half-hour against the Foxes and Thomas Tuchel is believed to harbour some reservations about the 22-year-old.
According to The Times, Crystal Palace are now looking to test Chelsea’s resolve and are looking to convince their London rivals to sell the midfielder.
They have submitted an initial bid of around £27m and are pushing to bring Gallagher back to Selhurst Park, where he enjoyed a promising loan spell last season.
Chelsea had been weighing up the possibility of loaning out the midfielder for a third consecutive campaign, with Everton one of several teams interested, but Palace want to secure Gallagher on a permanent deal for £27m.
Gallagher had been keen to fight for his place at Stamford Bridge – the club he supports and has played for since he was eight – but Palace believe they can persuade him to leave
Patrick Vieira has a close relationship with Gallagher and Palace can assure him of a starting role in the side, something which could be key in a World Cup year.
When all Chelsea’s midfielders are fit, Gallagher would be fourth-choice at best behind Jorginho, Kante and Kovacic, while players like Mason Mount and Chukwuemeka can also play in midfield.
Cashing in on Gallagher could provide the Blues with extra funds to up their offers for Anthony Gordon and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
The midfielder was criticised by manager Tuchel after his dismissal against Leicester City at the weekend and wrote an apology on social media afterwards.
‘You can’t make the [second] challenge if you have a yellow card after 20 or 25 minutes. The challenge was a clear yellow card and gave us a huge disadvantage,’ said the Chelsea boss.
‘There was no reason to make this decision. He is responsible for what he did and of course he knows it was a huge mistake.’
Writing on Instagram, Gallagher said: ‘Personally, I want to apologise to my teammates, staff and the fans. I take full responsibility for the rash decision leaving them with a huge challenge for the rest of the game. Thankfully, they came through.’
