Transfer rumours are football’s answer to those dreaded celebrity gossip magazines that, for some reason, wives and girlfriends insist on reading to whatever male is trapped in their grasp.

Just as Hello, OK or Heat, will use a ‘close anonymous source’ to inform you that Jennifer Lopez often exceeds the government-recommended daily allowance for cheese to maintain her booty’s world-renowned plumpness, the Daily Star, the Sun, or Mirror Football often produce entire articles based upon the apparent knowledge of a ‘club insider’. Whether it’s the janitor or Jose Mourinho, a Shed End steward or Andriy Shevchenko, doesn’t seem to matter as long as it gives the tabloids something to write about and speculate on.

That being said, a recent Chelsea-based transfer rumour has particularly caught my attention; the alleged swap deal (presumably also including some cash on the Blues’ part) involving Andre Schurrle and Borussia Dortmund’s Marco Reus, courtesy of the Daily Express.

Once again, concrete facts are a little thin on the ground - even the anonymous source is absent - but there’s a lot of logic behind this rumour; in a nutshell, it would probably be the best outcome for all parties involved.

First of all, there’s the issue Reus’ £20million release clause, set to come into effect in summer 2015. Having recently ended contract talks at Westfalen without a new deal - on the pretence that Borussia Dortmund’s current league position of 15^th is too harrowing to be talking about a pay-rise - it seems virtually every major club in Europe, ranging from Real Madrid to Liverpool, Juventus to PSG, will be entering the race for the Germany international’s signature and most likely using every dirty trick in the book - he has won the Bundesliga’s Player of the Year award twice in the last three seasons, after all.

The Reus transfer showdown was expected to take place next summer, but having amassed an incredible 80 goals in his last 173 appearances from out wide, including 11 in 23 in the Champions League and five in nine this season, it appears the European elite can’t wait that long.

The January window will now be the proverbial battle ground and although Borussia Dortmund have actively let contracts wind down before as a principle- Robert Lewandowski being the obvious example - they’d be stark-raving mad to reject more lucrative offers for Reus in January when his summer departure, especially following the German side’s horrific start to the season, is now inevitable.

Should that be the case, the Black-Yellows are also left susceptible to their greatest fear; yet another world-class star ditching them for Bayern Munich, making it three in three summers following Mario Gotze and Lewandowski.

Selling in January however leaves Reus’ fate largely in Dortmund’s hands - the opportunity to boot him away to the furthest destination possible and west London is as good as any. Chelsea and Dortmund may eventually end up clashing in the Champions League from time-to-time, but that’s better than facing the Bavarians, even further strengthened by the Black-Yellows talisman, at least twice per-annum.

Secondly, in the modern market, £20million - or as reported, £25million in January - really isn’t a lot of money, should the German side sell to the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool or Real Madrid. Dortmund’s ability to pick up young, promising talents for cheap fees is exceptional; they signed Mats Hummels, Sven Bender, Neven Subotic, Ilkay Gundogan and Jakub Blaszczykowski for a combined €19million for example. But they’ll want a direct, likeminded replacement for Reus, which will be hard to find for such a modest fee. To put that into context, Liverpool bought Adam Lallana for the same amount last summer, and 19 year-old winger prodigy Lazar Markovic only cost them £5million less.

Andre Schurrle could well be the answer. Although somewhat overshadowed by Reus in terms of ability, the Chelsea forward shares many traits with his Germany team-mate; versatility, work-rate, defence-stretching pace and proficiency in front of goal, netting ten times in 38 Premiership appearances for the Blues and 38 times in 131 outings during his four terms in the Bundesliga, with Mainz and Bayer Leverkusen.

The 24 year-old’s proved himself a useful squad member in his near 18 months at Stamford Bridge, but inconsistency will likely see him never exceed a rotational role, sharing game-time with fellow right winger Willian. Last season for example, he’d only scored three Premier League goals before March, but then grabbed a hat-trick against Fulham and netted in a 6-0 win over Arsenal in the space of four league outings.

Even his £18million arrival last summer, preceding Jose Mourinho’s anticipated return, came with a hint of an acquisition for the Blues’ eventual benefit in the transfer market rather than on the pitch. Although Dortmund may not be the most attractive prospect right now compared to the Premier League leaders, their reputation of overachievement in Europe under Jurgen Klopp precedes them, and they stand a better chance than any Bundesliga side of curtailing Bayern Munich's continuous dominance over the next few years.

Reus, on the other hand, would constitute the final piece of a perfect starting Xi for Chelsea, with world-class quality, energy and discipline in virtually every position. It seems they’ll take the Premier League title relatively comfortably this season, but the German international‘s hypothetical arrival makes that, in addition to a title retention next year, all the more likely.

Can any of this be considered absolute? Of course not, it's just a transfer rumour. But there's clear benefits for all parties; Reus gets to move to a bigger club competing for regular trophies; Schurrle can return to his homeland and command a near-permanent place in the first team; Dortmund get a direct replacement for Reus that will hit the ground running without the need to negotiate with another club; Chelsea improve their starting Xi at virtually no cost and the Black-Yellows won't have to endure the embarrassment of selling another key player to Bayern Munich.

Whether anything genuine materialises in January however, remains to be seen.

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