Chelsea unlikely to sign Josko Gvardiol in the near future. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)
According to the Evening Standard, European champions Real Madrid are set to open a bidding war for Chelsea target and Croatia international Josko Gvardiol.
During the summer transfer window, it was revealed that the Blues made a late attempt to sign the centre-back. But, a move did not materialise and he stayed at Leipzig for another campaign.
They have been linked with the 20-year-old ever since, with Football.London reporting that RB Leipzig would hold out for a transfer fee of around £77m. Premier League champions Manchester City had joined the race.
The latest update is that Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona have also joined the race. Scouts of a host of European clubs will have a close look at Gvardiol when he steps out to play the World Cup quarter-final against Brazil on Friday (December 9th). He has been one of the best defenders in this tournament.
Madrid are preparing a £78m bid to sign the former Dinamo Zagreb defender in order to beat rivals in the race. Historically, what the Los Blancos want in the transfer market generally ends up with them, barring a certain Kylian Mbappe.
Gvardiol is one of the few top centre-backs who is left-footed, which adds a different dimension to his game on a positive front. He is great on the ball, possesses great physical strength, reads the game well and is a handful at being the first point of attack from the back with line-breaking passes.
He would be a great addition to any team across the world. So why not Chelsea? We have experienced some of our top targets choosing to go to Spain rather than come to England in the summer (although it was Barcelona doing the taking then).
It is time we march ahead and sign Gvardiol ahead of the interest and bid from Real Madrid. Todd Boehly and co. were active in the summer transfer window and they would know that we perhaps need one or two more such windows to truly become one of the strongest teams in world football once again.
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