Chelsea are ready to spend this summer, with plenty of assets to sell and a Champions League windfall in the bank.
We’ve seen them linked with a long list of strikers, but central defenders seem to be on the agenda too.
Today in The Athletic, Adam Crafton is writing about Raphael Varane’s future, and he mentions Chelsea’s “informal interest” in the Real Madrid defender.
The Spanish club are “increasingly resigned to losing [Varane] this summer,” and it’s no surprise that Chelsea are at the very least keeping tabs on his situation.
On his day he’s one of the classiest defenders around, and with just a year left on his contract, he provides a tempting option for plenty of big clubs.
On the other hand, if Carlo Ancelotti arrives and makes a good impression on Varane, he might well be persuaded to extend his deal.
Or even worse for Los Blancos, see out his remaining year and leave for free in 2022.
