Chelsea and Liverpool are the frontrunners in the race for 22-year-old French midfield maestro

Chelsea and Liverpool gain an advantage over Real Madrid in their pursuit of Aurelien Tchouameni

According to Marca (h/t Metro), Chelsea and Liverpool may now have the upper hand over Real Madrid in the race to sign Aurelien Tchouameni in the upcoming summer transfer window. The Spanish champions appear content with their current midfielders and have chosen to hold off on signing the Monaco midfielder at least until next season.

The French International is considered one of the top midfielders in Europe. He has scored three goals and assisted one in 33 matches in the French Ligue 1. It represents a decent return for a player who thrives in the role of a defensive midfielder.

His popularity is growing after a string of excellent performances for club and country. Tchouaméni made his senior France debut against Bosnia and Herzegovina last September before earning his first start against Ukraine. He had previously represented his country at every youth level from the Under-16s to the Under-21s.

He is in no hurry for the transfer as he has a couple of more years left in his contract at Monaco and is ready for the move when it’s the right time. He spoke about his future and according to the Metro, refused to give away much about his future plans.

“I am contracted here until 2024 with the option until 2025. We’ll see what the future has in store for me,”

Are Chelsea in need of a midfielder?

With the withdrawal of Real Madrid from the race and only Liverpool being a strong contender, Chelsea have a good chance of signing the French young superstar from Monaca. But do we need a midfielder now?

There have been speculations previously about the midfield duo of N’Golo Kante and Jorghinho leaving amid a potential summer exodus. In that case, Tchouameni would be a perfect replacement for Kante.

But things are looking up now that probable new owners have been announced, and Kante may stay. In any event, the 22-year-old will be a nice addition to the team considering Kante is getting older and appeared tired in our recent games.

More Chelsea news

• Transfer News: PL rivals hold meeting to sign £40m Chelsea target playing in Italy
• “He’s not officially the owner”- Tuchel answers if he will pass on the Chelsea DNA to Todd Boehly
• Chelsea ace opens up regarding players’ involvement in the takeover situation

Given Chelsea’s defensive frailty in recent games, particularly the one against Wolves last Saturday, we may need to consider adding a talented defensive midfielder to improve the defence. Aurelian can help with this because he has already established himself as a great defensive midfielder in the French league, by helping Monaco finish third last season and winning the Ligue 1 young player of the year award and also making it to the Ligue 1 team of the season.

It’s good news that Madrid is out of the race and we have a better chance of signing the midfielder. But, we must act swiftly to secure the deal, as Liverpool have moved slightly ahead owing to our ownership crisis .