Much has been made of Chelsea’s lack of transfer activity so far this summer, but it appears as though things are about to get busy at Stamford Bridge.
The Premier League champions have seemingly made little progress in bringing in new faces so far, but all that could be about to change.
According to The Guardian, an improved bid of £55m will be made to try and prise Alex Sandro away from Juventus, while another £40m+ will be spent in order to take Monaco midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko to Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have been heavily paired with an interest in the duo, and given their return to the Champions League next season along with the requirement to add quality and depth to the squad, it appears as though Antonio Conte has settled on these two individuals as being key to his plans moving forward.
As noted in the report, it had been suggested that the 47-year-old’s relationship with the club was becoming tested by the lack of transfer activity, as the Italian tactician thought that the Blues would move quickly in giving him a boost with new players being signed.
It hasn’t transpired that way as he has been made to wait, while his handling of Diego Costa and the text message to inform him that he no longer had a role in his plans at Chelsea didn’t go down well with the club hierarchy.
Nevertheless, it’s claimed that ultimately these signings will help ease any tension between the two parties, with Chelsea also likely to wrap up a deal for free agent Willy Caballero after he was released by Manchester City, with the title holders needing to replace back-up goalkeeper Asmir Begovic after his move to Bournemouth.
It’s also added that Chelsea expect Conte to commit his future by signing a new contract extension worth £9.6m-a-year which will run until 2021, and so in a summer which didn’t start so positively, it could quickly change for the London giants.