Chelsea have been handed a huge boost to their hopes of signing Dusan Vlahovic this summer. The 23-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge recently, with Mauricio Pochettino said to still be in the market for a striker despite having already signed Nicolas Jackson.
Vlahovic, who sees his contract at the Allianz Stadium expire in 2026, featured 27 times for Juventus in the Serie A last season, finding the net ten times. Despite his misfortunes in front of goal, the Serbia international has reportedly courted the interest of the Blues.
Chelsea have struggled to replace the Didier Drogba over the years, with only Diego Costa and Olivier Giroud coming close to fulfilling the target man role in west London. Several managers have experimented with the likes of Alvaro Morata, Timo Werner and Kai Havertz, but none have enjoyed nearly as much success as the Ivorian.
According to Italian outlet Corriere della Sera, the Old Lady rejected an opening bid from the Blues for Vlahovic worth around €60million (£51.5m). The report states that Juventus could be open to offloading the Serbian if their £77million asking price is met – £11m more than what they paid for him last year.
With a disparity in valuations, Romelu Lukaku has emerged as a potential makeweight for Chelsea. Corriere dello Sport outline that the Italian giants have informed the Blues that they can sign Vlahovic for just €25million (£21million) if the Belgium international is included a player plus cash swap deal.
The report states that Lukaku, who joined Chelsea for an eye-watering £97million in 2021, has already told Juventus that he's open to a move to Turin, so now Massimiliano Allegri's side are expected to try and close a deal with the Blues by offering up the Serbia. According to Italian football agent Massimo Brambati earlier this year, the Blues face serious competition from two top European clubs for Vlahovic's signature.
In an interview on TMW Radio, he said: "There are three teams that showed up. In my opinion, Juve will take these offers seriously. All of them have an important profile, because they’re Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid.
READ MORE: Chelsea news and transfers LIVE: Paulo Dybala claim, Caicedo boost, Vlahovic swap, Lukaku offer
"I don’t know if the capital gain will be made [on Juventus' initial £66.6million investment], but after a year and a half of Vlahovic they’ve already amortised a year’s gross salary and a good part of the amount invested too."
