Netherlands international manager Louis van Gaal has described the renaissance of Chelsea target Matthijs de Ligt as one where he has 'risen from the darkness.'
Chelsea's defence is in need of major surgery this summer after the departures of two key players in the form of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. With. more expected to follow in this major defensive re-shuffle, Thomas Tuchel needs to bring in centre-halves with big personalities capable of filling the voids vacated by the aforementioned duo.
Jules Kounde is expected to be one of those signed as Todd Boehly tries to negotiate a cut-price deal with Sevilla knowing that Barcelona are lurking in the background but the expectation is that a deal will be done and finalised in the near future. Then who else will partner the 5ft 8in defender who is regarded as one of the best currently in La Liga? Thiago Silva will certainly be an ever-presence in the backline but at the age of 37, will not be able to start ever game next season.
READ MORE: Matthijs De Ligt tells Chelsea why their Todd Boehly 'sporting project' gives them transfer hope
Trevor Chalobah and Levi Colwill are two internal names that have a chance to make an impression during pre-season but the expectation was that another proven defender would be signed to partner Kounde for 2022/23.
That plan in itself may have to be thrown away now with what has happened with aspirational target de Ligt. Juventus' number 4 has always been held in high regard by the Chelsea board but his £103m release clause has deterred them up till this point. "The prospect of signing de Ligt this summer was floated to Chelsea earlier in the season as he is on big money at Juventus. But the Dutchman is currently in talks over a new deal with Juve and the first-choice centre-back signing for Chelsea remains Kounde," football.london's Chelsea Chief correspondent Adam Newson had updated in his most recent Q&A a few weeks ago.
So with the news that talks have broken down over a new contract which has now resulted in Juventus' number 4 requesting a Chelsea and Premier League move, it would be logical for Boehly to shelve the Premier League criteria and instead go hell for leather for a player who is still years away from his prime at 22 but is regarded already as one of the best centre-backs in the world and European football.
Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport have run with the title on their back page which translates to 'De Ligt wants the Premier.' A situation that wasn't expected to unfold after the Dutch player in question announced that despite his frustrations at seeing both Milan clubs reign superior in Serie A over the last few seasons, that he would hold contract negotiations over extending his current deal which is set to run out in 2024.
Other reports from the likes of La Repubblica have even gone as far to say that Chelsea, in spite of interest from Man United and Man City, are the most willing to invest around £60m to sign the defender. Their report goes on to clarify that the Blues' offer is the most 'concrete' one on the table at this current moment.
The key question is whether or not the once Ajax prodigy is worth the £60m gamble? Well, his international manager Van Gaal has certainly been impressed with the mentality his key defender has shown to battle back from the setbacks of his big dip in form that de Ligt suffered in the early days after his £77m big-money move from Ajax was completed back in 2019.
Initially, after a rocky start to life in Italy, he lost his regular starting eleven place in the backline to the likes of Stefan de Vrij and Daley Blind under Ronald Koeman but under the former Man United boss, it has been a different story although he still has a fight on his hands to permanently topple the Inter Milan man ahead of the Qatar World Cup.
“He has risen from the darkness! I’ve seen his last two games at Juventus, you saw real progress," Van Gaal said back in 2021. "I am happy with that. What does that mean? He’s getting closer and closer to play. But he has an incredible competitor in Stefan de Vrij.”
Chelsea fans - would a centre-back partnership of Jules Kounde and Matthijs de Ligt work in your opinion? Leave your thoughts down below in the comments section!
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