Liverpool centre-half Virgil van Dijk has already approved the potential Chelsea signing of his Holland national teammate Matthijs de Ligt with his seven-word verdict amid the Juventus defender reportedly handing in a 'transfer request'.
Jules Kounde is nailed on to become one of the first Chelsea defensive signings this summer as Todd Boehly and Thomas Tuchel are set to spend a large chunk of the £200million transfer budget on defensive reinforcements to compensate for the Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen departures. Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta could follow suit next meaning multiple players have to be brought in with the Sevilla man top of that list. The fee is the only stumbling block in negotiations currently as the Blues try and secure a reduced price fee for the 23-year-old who is desperate to get his dream move this summer.
Worryingly though, Barcelona are still lingering in this race but their interest isn't expected to derail Chelsea in their efforts as they are expected to wrap up a deal in the near future to end this long transfer pursuit. In addition, Lens full-back Jonathan Clauss is target number one if Azpilicueta was to seal his dream Barca move this summer. But the business in the backline doesn't stop there as it was understood that a Premier League-proven option was being searched for as a potential partner to Kounde with this certain plan now in jeopardy after what has happened with De Ligt.
