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Report: Chelsea ahead of Tottenham in race for "special" England ace, major bid being considered

Chelsea are looking to strengthen multiple key areas in Enzo Maresca's squad, before they tackle their first campaign back in the Champions League next season, and they've made a fantastic start with their deal for Liam Delap.

Chelsea's transfer plans after signing Liam Delap

The striker has now fully sealed his switch to Stamford Bridge after completing a medical (Fabrizio Romano), with Chelsea activating his £30 million release clause and securing their first signing of the summer.

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The west Londoners are looking to get in ahead of Arne Slot's side.

Delap may not be their only striker signing of the summer, either, with Sky Germany's Florian Plettenberg reporting late last week that Chelsea remain in serious pursuit of Eintracht Frankfurt's Hugo Ekitike.

As well as Ekitike, Chelsea are actively discussing the signing of a new attacking midfielder or winger, with Kenan Yildiz (Juventus), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Jeremy Doku (Man City), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Max Tillman (PSV), Jamie Gittens (Borussia Dortmund), Alejandro Garnacho (Man United) and Athletic Bilbao starlet Nico Williams all considered (Simon Phillips).

BlueCo are said to be working hard to bolster some key areas before the Club World Cup begins in under a fortnight, with Chelsea taking this summer's tournament seriously given the riches on offer.

Stamford Bridge - Chelsea

Chelsea could secure £97 million worth of prize money if they win the whole thing, and reliable journalist Simon Phillips writes that they're very keen to sign a new centre-back before the CWC kicks off.

Chelsea held productive talks over a move for Dean Huijsen, but eventually missed out on a deal for the Spain international when Real Madrid came knocking.

Now, they've turned to alternative targets, and one of them is Everton star Jarrad Branthwaite.

Chelsea ponder "big-money" bid for Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite

The England international, who made his Three Lions debut last year, should arguably have more senior caps for the national team considering his excellent and assured displays on Merseyside, but his talent isn't lost on Chelsea.

The 22-year-old is high on their defensive transfer shortlist of targets, even if Toffees boss David Moyes is reportedly "pleading" with him to stay.

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TEAMtalk have an update on the situation, and they write that Chelsea are "seriously" considering a "big-money" bid for Branthwaite - who could cost up to £75 million.

The Blues are thought to be more "advanced" in their interest than London rivals Tottenham, but it'll take a marquee fee to prise the highly-rated centre-half down south.

Everton are said to be in a strong position in regard to PSR, and have an option to extend Branthwaite's contract by a further year, meaning Chelsea will need to stump up a very large fee to even get his club to the negotiating table.

While Branthwaite is expected to be an expensive potential buy, he is one of England's most exciting young defenders, with Jamie Carragher already calling him a "special" player to watch out for.

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