According to reports in The Telegraph, Chelsea are ready to bankroll a £250m spending spree on four more signings before the summer transfer window slams shut.
What’s the word, then?
Well, The Telegraph says that Blues boss Antonio Conte wants to sign four more players before the end of next month as he looks to compete in all four competitions the club face next season, and if he gets who he wants it could cost the Premier League holders £250m.
The Telegraph says that he wants to bring Juventus left-back Alex Sandro, Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk, Inter Milan winger Antonio Candreva and Swansea City striker Fernando Llorente to Stamford Bridge.
The Telegraph says that Chelsea are optimistic on a £60m deal for Sandro, while they are ready to step up their interest in Candreva and see Llorente as a realistic option to act as back-up to new boy Alvaro Morata.
Meanwhile, the report adds that Van Dijk isn’t a priority buy after the west London outfit already signed Antonio Rudiger from AS Roma, but they are monitoring developments after the Saints captain made it clear that he wants to leave St Mary’s and was left out of the 25-man squad that flew to France as part of their pre-season preparations on Monday.
How did the quartet do last season?
They all did very well.
Sandro established himself as Juventus’ first-choice left-back and scored three goals and provided a further seven assists in 43 appearances in all competitions, while Van Dijk was once again a colossus at the back for Southampton before picking up a season-ending injury in January.
Llorente scored 15 Premier League goals in his first season in the Premier League to help Swansea City narrowly avoid relegation to the Championship, and Candreva netted eights goals and picked up 11 assists in 45 outings in total for Inter Milan.
Would they be good signings?
They certainly would be.
Alex Sandro would provide some much-needed competition for Marcos Alonso at left wing-back, while Van Dijk has quickly established himself as one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League with Southampton.
Llorente would give the Blues a different option from the substitutes’ bench because of his 6’5” frame, while Candreva’s versatility mean that he could play either wing-back role, and provide some competition to the likes of Eden Hazard, Pedro and Willian further up the pitch.
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