South American forward and Dutch defender agreed with surprise move to Chelsea
Chelsea have enquired over the availability of Serie a giants, AC Milan attacker Rafael
Leao, as he continues contract talks with the Serie A champions.
The 23-year-old forward has enjoyed the best campaign of his career so far last time round,
founding back of the net 14 times in all competitions as AC Milan won their first league trophy
since 2011.
The Portugal international has developed into one of the most respected attacker’s in
Europe, winning the Serie A Most Valuable Player award last campaign, a prize formerly
won by Cristiano Ronaldo, Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku.
La Gazetta Dello Sport claims that talkis are underway over extending his deal in Milan,
with his current contract running till 2024, and he is keen to remain at the San Siro..
However, a deal has not been agreed yet and the Italian publication state that the Blues
have been in contact, enquiring over the availability of the highly-rated attacker.
With Leao happy in Milan and the team not interested in selling, a move to Stamford
Bridge seems unlikely, however, the West London giants, have the ability to make a huge offer
which could see a deal done.
Transfer business is proving very slow so far under their new ownership and as the summer
goes on, the more likely it is that Chelsea will make big bids for players as they need
to fill holes in their squad.
Defence remains the priority for Thomas Tuchel as he is in the market for a replacements
to Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger. with a deal for Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly
is on the verge to be finalised.
Meanwhile, Chelsea are on the verge to finalise £47.5m transfer of Raheem Sterling.
Chelsea must sign Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt this transfer window, according to
Frank Leboeuf.
Netherlands international centre-back is Chelsea’s primary defensive transfer target and Thomas
Tuchel’s side have been given fresh hope of signing him.
The 22-year-old centre-back joined Italian giants from Ajax three years ago for £67.8m,
however, has largely failed to live up to expectations and is claimed to have informed
the Italian team of his desire to depart from the club amid strong interest from Chelsea.
Juventus have already rejceted the Blues’ offer of €40m (£34.4m) plus Timo Werner
for a Dutch defender and according to reports, the Blues are now including Christian Pulisic
as part of their talks.
Asked on if he had concerns over the pace of Matthijs de Ligt playing alongside Thiago
Silva at the heart of the team’s defence, Leboeuf, who won two FA Cups and the EFL Cup
at Chelsea between 1996 and 2001, told ESPN: ‘It’s a fact.
‘But they have other qualities. De Ligt was struggling at first at Juventus, but he
showed [his quality] when playing for Ajax. He [also] showed last season that he is capable
of dealing with any striker.
‘With the experience of Thiago Silva, with the help of Edouard Mendy and with N’Golo
Kante in front of him, I am sure he can sort any problems out.
‘It’s not the only possibility for Chelsea in central defence, we also hear about Kalidou
Koulibaly from Napoli, but I definitely think De Ligt will please the Chelsea fans and will
do well for the club. I’d go for him, I’d definitely go for him.’