Maresca needs defensive competitionMaresca needs defensive competition
Maresca needs defensive competition | Getty Images
Chelsea are said to have a list of defensive options as they look to add serious competition at centre-back.
Chelsea have reportedly put together three defender targets, but their list should be even shorter. The Blues are looking to get off to a fast start to the 10-day special early summer transfer window, which is already open.
Enzo Maresca’s men will be distracted by the FIFA Club World Cup later this month, and so the 10-day window will give them the chace to make an early start, and Liam Delap looks as though he could be first in through the door. It’s report Chelsea have already reached a £30million agreement, which is the value of the player’s release clause.
Aside from a striker, the Blues also need a winger and a defender as a minimum, with Maresca sorely short of depth out wide, while the Chelsea boss simply needs more quality at the back, with Benoit Badiashile likely to pay the price, while Wesley Fofana has an uncertain future amid a troubled injury history.
Trevoh Chalobah has been linked with a move away, but Maresca has spoken highly of his impact since his return from a loan spell with Crystal Palace during the winter window. Either way, a new centre-back signing is almost certain, and according to Sky Sports, there are three players currently on the list.
It’s claimed Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi, Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite and Ajax’s Jorrel Hato are the main options being considered by the West London club as things stand. Hato is said to be valued at just under £50million, while Branthwaite will cost significantly more, although the exact asking price is unknown.
Palace wanted £75million to sell Guehi last summer, but while their position as a club has been strengthened by their FA Cup win and Europa League qualification, the defender is out of contract in one year, and if they can’t convince him to sign a new deal, they are going to have to consider selling this summer.
Chelsea should whittle list down to one
Hato is unproven and Branthwaite is going to be far too expensive if Everton get their wish. Guehi is not only proven at club and international level, but he also knows Chelsea well having come through at the club initially. He never made a league appearance, but the England international did feature in the cup for the club.
If Chelsea can get that fee down to around £60million, they would be signing an experienced 24-year-old defender who still has his best football ahead of him. He has stayed fit and proved to be a vital piece in a good-looking Palace side, while he was also key to England’s run to the final last summer.
He’s a centre-back who will fit in like a glove in this Chelsea side, especially alongside compatriot Levi Colwill, who is currently the club’s best centre-back. The Blues are currently in a position to get ahead in the race for Guehi having already effectively wrapped up the Delap deal.
Maresca and the club’s recruitment chiefs should move quickly and effectively to get the deal wrapped up and forget about the other options on that list.
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