With Michy Batshuayi officially signed and manager Antonio Conte set to join the side soon, Chelsea’s summer seems to be in full swing.
Coming off of a season that saw the West London outfit finish in tenth place, reinforcements were evident and as Guus Hiddink’s interim spell as manager finished, we saw an influx of transfer rumors begin to be linked to the team. Big names such as N’Golo Kante and Radja Nainggolan have been the staples of these rumors, but more recently, defunct Juventus striker Alvaro Morata has been linked to Conte’s side.
The 23-year-old striker would be coming off of a Euro 2016 campaign that saw him finish with three goals over the four games he started. In 42 games with Juventus last season, in which he started 22, he scored nine goals, while doling out nine assists.
Earlier this past week Morata returned to his parent club, Real Madrid, after their buy-back clause was activated. Madrid have been suitors of Eden Hazard for some time now and rumors kicked off with the Spanish outfit offering cash alongside Morata for Hazard’s services in exchange.
Speaking to Goal.com, Hazard’s older brother, Kylian Hazard, had this to say about that rumor: “Eden will stay at Chelsea, he is happy at Chelsea. He loves London, it is good for him there.“
Quashing those rumors, it was then said that Chelsea would launch a bid to acquire the services of Morata with enigmatic striker Diego Costa reportedly unsettled. The Daily Mail reported that Costa wanted to go back to Atletico Madrid, but Conte would attempt to be the voice of reason. That talk seemingly worked with Costa refuting the statement, reiterating his desire to play for Chelsea next season, according to The Telegraph.
Speaking with Sky Sports, Guillem Balague has stated that Real Madrid has valued Morata at €75 million with Chelsea now competing with London rivals Arsenal for the signature of the striker. Balague also added that if required to leave Real Madrid, Morata would prefer a move to the Barclays Premier League.
Accustomed to playing two strikers up front, the most recent development in this rumor now seems to indicate the pendulum swinging in Chelsea’s direction as the MARCA reported that Conte wants to play Morata alongside Costa next season and Owner Roman Abramovich is “willing to satisfy his desire.” That same report, though, has indicated that Real Madrid President Florentino Perez wants to see Morata in the first team next season and only if Chelsea meet a €70 million price tag will he be let go of.
The Morata rumor is clearly picking up steam as we see Chelsea becoming more and more active in transfer dealings. Other names to keep a look out for, alongside Kante and Nainggolan, are Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly and Lazio winger Antonio Candreva as Chelsea have indicated interest.
Expect moves to occur as Conte has stated his desire to add three starting pieces for what is sure to be a revamped Chelsea team come kickoff next month.
