Andreas Christensen moving to Barcelona is now a 'real option' for both the player and the club, according to reports in Spain.
The Denmark international sees his contract at Chelsea expire at the end of the season and it does not look like he will be extending his over decade-long stay in west London.
football.london understands that a contract offer has been on the table for Christensen for some time now, but the 25-year-old has not accepted the renewal.
Now, according to Cadena SER, via Sport Witness, Barcelona are very interested in Christensen's services and talks between the club and the player's entourage are advanced.
What has Tuchel said on Christensen?
Back in November, there was a run of games where Thomas Tuchel did not include Christensen and the Chelsea boss confessed that it was down to his contract situation.
Tuchel then told the Dane that he would need to sort the behind-the-scenes situation out in order to become a regular in the Blues defence again.
He said: "I have no good news. It was my understanding weeks ago that Andreas wants the same as me and the club. This is why, for me, it was a zero-problem situation because everybody wanted the same as I understood it.
"We are waiting a long time now for confirmation. It's on Andreas to act how he acts on the pitch off the pitch and walk the talk.
"He tells us he loves Chelsea, that he wants to stay and be a big part, because he is a big part of a big club. I think he is the perfect fit, he is not done yet here, his career here is not finished.
"He can still develop and be a big, big player. But like I said it’s on him. We want the commitment. Hopefully, we get it."
Tuchel was then asked whether Christensen's absence from the team would harm the club's chances of persuading him to stay put beyond the end of the season.
He replied: "No, the opposite. We have the hope it influences the contract situation a little bit.
"My understanding was in a very short period we would have good news. I said around the international break that for me, it is a matter of days that we think we can give good news about Andreas.
"As I understood it, the club wants the same, the player wants the same, and the coach wants the same: to stay. That is why we need the commitment and we can continue."
Despite Tuchel's comments, Christensen has played eight times in all competitions since, with his contract situation seemingly no closer to being resolved.
