Cardiff City remain interested to bring Chelsea striker Omari Kellyman back to the club after a successful loan term during the 2025-26 season.

The Bluebirds have been fairly quiet in terms of signings this summer, with Brian Barry-Murphy’s team in need of strengthening after finishing second in League One last season.

There was a highly public chase of Tromso midfielder Jens Hjerto-Dahl in recent weeks, with Cardiff set to spend multiple millions on the youngster’s services, but the South Wales outfit have had to pivot as Hull City have swooped in to grab his services.

Cardiff, on the other hand, achieved a breakthrough this week when Lincoln City attacking midfielder Jack Moylan joined the club for an undisclosed amount, which is the Imps’ record for a sale, with some reports estimating it to be about £2 million.

Cardiff City’s Omari Kellyman transfer position becomes plain.

Moylan adds to the loan signing of Nathan Trott last year being made permanent, but will another player from their League One campaign in the form of Kellyman be returning to the Cardiff City Stadium in the near future?

According to WalesOnline, versatile 20-year-old forward Kellyman remains on Cardiff’s transfer radar this summer, with a ‘live possibility’ of a deal being completed.

It is said that Chelsea wants Kellyman to grow further in second-tier football, which City can now supply, although there is huge interest in the ex-Aston Villa youngster’s services.

Kellyman has been on Chelsea’s pre-season tour of Asia and Australia, which concludes this weekend in Indonesia, and he could be available for another brief trip when the group returns to British shores.

Omari Kellyman appeared in Cardiff City’s promotion in 2025-26.

Having joined Chelsea in a £19 million deal from Aston Villa in 2024, Kellyman suffered from hamstring troubles in his first year at Stamford Bridge, and underwent surgery in March 2025 to try and fix the issue.

Kellyman appeared 36 times in League One for Cardiff last season, scoring 11 times under Barry-Murphy from a variety of attacking positions, and there is now speculation that he will return for a second stint, this time at a higher level.

Omari Kellyman’s Cardiff City League One Stats – 2025-26 Season

Appearances

36

Goals

11 assists, 2 goal conversions.

15%

Big Opportunities Created

2

Key Passes per Game

0.4

Successful Dribbles Per Game

1.0

Duels Won per Game

4.5

Stats provided by Sofascore

And given the experience they gave Kellyman in the Welsh capital last season, Cardiff could potentially be in pole position to land the Derby-born maestro once more if there’s several clubs in for him.

Omari Kellyman could really flourish in a second Cardiff City stint

Chelsea apparently thought a lot of Kellyman at youth level for Aston Villa to invest the hefty sum of £19 million quid for his services, but he’s not been given the chance to break through into the first-team just yet in west London.

He has yet to get off the bench in their pre-season friendly, which is not surprising given the size of Xabi Alonso’s team as it stands right now.

Kellyman’s best and most obvious plan of action before the transfer market closes on September 1 is to go out on loan again, and clubs in the Championship and possibly overseas will be interested in taking him on loan for the season, given his potential.

But there’s only one club he should be looking at, and that’s Cardiff. Even with the signing of Moylan, who joins the likes of Rubin Colwill, Ollie Tanner, Chris Willock, Isaak Davies, and Cian Ashford, all of whom can play in the number 10 or wide roles, Barry-Murphy would have plenty of options.