Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express.
Chelsea transfer pressure mounts as Real Madrid accept £36.3m bid for target
Chelsea look set to miss out on one of their summer transfer targets after Real Madrid accepted a bid for Achraf Hakimi.
Chelsea target Achraf Hakimi shows off speed in training
Chelsea could see their defensive options whittled down ahead of the summer transfer window after Real Madrid accepted a bid from Inter Milan for Achraf Hakimi. The Moroccan ace was on the Blues radar as Frank Lampard begins a squad overhaul prior to the 2020/21 Premier League campaign.
Chelsea are looking to strengthen in a host of key areas and saw Hakimi as a signing who would add some much needed versatility to their rearguard.
The 21-year-old can operate on either side of the defence and would have provided competition for Marcos Alonso if the Blues' pursuit of Ben Chilwell proves unsuccessful.
LATEST LIVE SPORT TV DEALS
Get Sky Sports for just £25 per month for 3 months
However, The Guardian claim Inter Milan are close to signing Hakimi after Real Madrid accepted a £35.8m (€40m) bid.
Hakimi has reportedly agreed terms on a five-year contract with Inter, having impressed on loan at Borussia Dortmund for the past two seasons.
JUST IN: Sports quiz questions and answers: 15 questions for your virtual pub quiz
The full-back came through the youth ranks at Real Madrid but was unwilling to spend the upcoming season as understudy to Dani Carvajal at the Bernabeu.
Manchester City and Bayern Munich were both keen on signing up Hakimi while Dortmund were happy to have the player back on a permanent transfer.
But former Chelsea manager Antonio Conte swooped in to offer Hakimi first-team football at the San Siro next term, and now a look to Inter looks all but done.
The impending move puts added pressure on Chelsea to get a deal done for Chilwell but Leicester are expected to demand a fee in the region of £80m.
DON'T MISS
Frank Lampard held secret meeting and sent Timo Werner Whatsapp messages to seal transfer
Frank Lampard's judgement on David Luiz proved right again after Chelsea's sale to Arsenal
Five Chelsea stars playing for their Stamford Bridge futures in final Premier League games
This is the same sum Manchester United paid for centre-back Harry Maguire last summer.
Chelsea have already spent heavily before the transfer window has even opened, with a £33.4m deal for Hakim Ziyech penned in February.
The Blues have also agreed to trigger Timo Werner's £53m release clause at RB Leipzig and a move for £70m-rated Kai Havertz is being considered.
Funds may therefore be in short supply for the pursuit of Chilwell, so the Blues could turn to cheaper alternatives such as Alex Telles or Nicolas Tagliafico.
The latter is expected to leave Ajax this summer, with manager Erik ten Hag already resigned to the Argentine departing.
"Agreements have been made with Andre Onana, Donny van de Beek and Nicolas Tagliafico, but it remains to be seen whether the market is indeed breaking loose.
"For Onana and Van de Beek, another year of Ajax could certainly be an option, for Tagliafico it is slightly different because of his age."
The player's agent Ricardo Schlieper said: "We have agreed with Ajax that he would leave this year.
“After having spent two-and-a-half seasons at the club, it’s the ideal moment for it.
"If football goes back to being normal, a transfer could be done for Tagliafico."
This article contains affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission on any sales of products or services we write about. This article was written completely independently, see more details here