Chelsea full-back Baba Rahman 'passes medical' ahead of Schalke switch

Chelsea left-back Baba Rahman has completed his medical at Schalke with his return to the club on loan expected to be confirmed soon according to latest reports.

Deemed "too attacking" by Antonio Conte following the Italian's arrival at Stamford Bridge in 2016, Rahman joined Schalke on what was meant to be a season-long loan. His spell in Germany was cut short in January 2017 when he suffered a cruciate ligament injury while on international duty with Ghana but having returned to training, the Bundesliga have been confident over a deal to bring him back.

Earlier this month, head coach Domenico Tedesco suggested the club are still trying to establish Rahman's fitness levels after such a lengthy layoff. The move took another step towards completion on Thursday [25 January] when the club's sporting director Christian Heidel declared they were on the "home straight" in getting the deal done.

"He's [Schalke] due to undergo a medical here, but the deal is not complete yet. He got some minutes with the Chelsea reserves recently. We'll give him the time he needs, but the medical will reveal more."

Sky Sport Italy now report Rahman has successfully completed that medical. A formal announcement over the move is now expected soon with Kicker suggesting Rahman could be ready to take part in Schalke's training sessions at the start of next week.

For the moment, there is no indication as to whether Schalke will had the option to make the move permanent at the end of the season, with Heidel suggesting those terms are still being discussed with Chelsea.

Having allowed Kenedy to join Newcastle United on loan until the end of the season, Rahman's departure will leave Chelsea without any recognised cover for Marcos Alonso; albeit temporarily. The Premier League champions are still hoping to bring in 23-year-old Emerson Palmieri from AS Roma.

Rahman's departure would be the fifth deal completed by Chelsea so far in January with Kenedy's move to Newcastle was preceded by the respective loan exits of youngsters Ike Ugbo and Jake Clarke-Salter, who joined MK Dons and Sunderland respectively.

Ross Barkley remains the only incoming piece of business this month.