Chelsea are confident of sealing the signing of Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly and are continuing to push forward with a deal for Manchester City centre-back Nathan Ake, football.london understands.
A defensive overhaul is required at Chelsea this summer following the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen to Real Madrid, and Thomas Tuchel is believed to have approved the signing of Senegal captain Koulibaly, who celebrated his 31st birthday last month.
The defender has been on Chelsea's radar for a number of seasons; Maurizio Sarri hoped to bring him to Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2018. But no deal was previously possible with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis's intent on keeping Koulibaly in south Italy.