Here are your latest Football.London Chelsea morning headlines on Friday, July 15.
Kalidou Koulibaly will be a 'top' player for Chelsea
The Senegal international is set to pen a four-year deal with the Blues after Chelsea and Napoli agreed upon a £34million transfer fee.
With Matthijs de Ligt seemingly off to Bayern Munich, next on Thomas Tuchel's wishlist was Edouard Mendy's international teammate, who is expected to be a direct replacement for Antonio Rudiger.
And Ally McCoist of talkSPORT is backing this 'top' signing to perform well in the Premier League amid age concerns that have been highlighted by rival fans, who are less convinced.
READ MORE: Chelsea make huge Cristiano Ronaldo transfer decision after Todd Boehly was offered Man Utd star
McCoist said: "Got to be said, (I’m) quite happy at this moment in time. I was worried about Lukaku leaving, as one thing, but you could tell I was more concerned about the centre-back situation losing (Andreas) Christensen and (Antonio) Rudiger.
"So I’m pleased, I think Koulibaly is one of those players, a couple of years ago, I thought was in top form and looked one of the best centre-backs in Europe. I know he’s 31, however I think it’ll be a great signing and we need another one."
Raheem Sterling prediction made
What a first 48 hours or so it has been for the first men's recruit of the Todd Boehly era.
From having his signing confirmed to being thrust straight into first team training upon arrival in the USA, Sterling's first two days as a Chelsea player have certainly been busy to say the least.
Whether he features against Club America this weekend in the first pre-season game remains to be seen. His performances across the season are of some interest to McCoist, who has made his prediction on the 27-year-old ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.
He said: "Raheem Sterling, I’m really interested, really interest to see how Raheem Sterling performs with Chelsea this year. I think he’s got a bit to prove, he wants more gametime and I think he’ll get more gametime and prove to be a great signing. Early stage, as a Chelsea man you’re asking 'am I happy'? I’d have to say yes, I’m pretty pleased with what I’m seeing at this moment in time."
Jonathan Clauss setback
Chelsea target Jonathan Clauss has his heart set on a Marseille transfer as Todd Boehly instead diverts attentions to Kalidou Koulibaly, Nathan Ake and Presnel Kimpembe.
Get French Football News have reported that William Saliba's former loan club have submitted an opening £4million bid, which has been turned down by the Ligue 1 outfit, who are instead demanding around £9m to sell the 29-year-old this summer.
With a Chelsea approach now looking highly unlikely, Lens' No. 11 may never get the chance to feature at Stamford Bridge, unless Todd Boehly were to make a dramatic U-turn in Kimpembe or Ake negotiations. Maybe, Clauss could be the right-back cover Tuchel is reportedly looking for to act as back-up to Reece James, as per The Telegraph.
Read the full story here.
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