Chelsea are reportedly on alert for the potential transfer of Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane as no talks have yet taken place over a new contract for him at the Bernabeu.
According to Don Balon, this has sparked the interest of Chelsea in particular, with manager Frank Lampard keen to make changes to his squad, with defence a clear area of weakness at Stamford Bridge right now.
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The Blues had the worst defensive record of any team in the top half of the Premier League table last season, and although things have improved slightly this term, few could argue against the case for signing a top centre-back like Varane.
The France international hasn’t been at his very best of late, but on his day he’s up there with the finest defenders in Europe and could surely be a major upgrade on the likes of Antonio Rudiger, Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen.
Thiago Silva has been a useful signing for Chelsea, but at the age of 36 there’s surely not much chance of him being able to continue to play regularly and at a high standard at this level for much longer.
If Varane is available soon, Chelsea would do well to pounce, and Don Balon suggest his Madrid future is in doubt as his current deal expires in 2022 and there currently seems little prospect of negotiations to extend it.
