Aaron Anselmino was not allowed to stay at BVB, but he will not be staying at Chelsea either. The Argentine has become part of a swap deal and will now play for Racing Strasbourg in France.
Aaron Anselmino was not allowed to stay at BVB because the Argentine was unexpectedly recalled by Chelsea FC from his original one-year loan to Borussia Dortmund, even though he had settled in well in Dortmund. The defender, who came to Europe from Boca Juniors, made ten appearances for the Black and Yellows in all competitions, including three Champions League appearances.
However, Anselmino has a contract with Chelsea, and the Blues exercised their right to recall the player early. This would have been a perfectly understandable move if the Blues had considered the 20-year-old for their own squad plans. However, rumors quickly emerged that the center back would not be staying in London for the rest of the season, despite some personnel problems. And so it has come to pass: Chelsea is loaning Anselmino to Racing Strasbourg.
Rosenior pushed for Sarr transfer
Like Chelsea, the French first division club belongs to Todd Boehly’s BlueCo consortium, which is another reason why there is now a swap deal. Anselmino is being loaned to Strasbourg because Chelsea is bringing Mamadou Sarr back from Strasbourg early. The Blues signed the 20-year-old Senegalese player from Racing in the summer of 2025 and gave him a contract until 2033, but immediately loaned him back to their partner club, where he was one of the top performers.
Sarr’s move to Stamford Bridge is said to have come about mainly at the instigation of Chelsea coach Liam Rosenior, who himself only moved from Strasbourg to the Blues at the beginning of January. And Anselmino, as we now know, was merely a piece of the puzzle in the London club’s economic and transfer tactical intrigues.
