Chelsea have reportedly set their asking price to part ways with out-of-favour defender Trevoh Chalobah, who is on the radar of Aston Villa this summer.
The Blues confirmed the signing of Pedro Neto from Wolverhampton Wanderers this week in a deal worth around £54m.
Neto is the 10th signing the club have made this summer, following the likes of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Estevao Willian and Omari Kellyman, to arrive at Stamford Bridge in the last month.
All totted up, Enzo Maresca's side have already spent over £185m on new signings this offseason and are now looking to sell a few of their existing players in order to maintain PSR compliance.
Conor Gallagher is on the verge of completing a move to Atletico Madrid, while the side are open to offers for Romelu Lukaku, Armando Broja and Raheem Sterling.
© Imago
Aston Villa learn Chalobah asking price
Aston Villa have signalled their interest in signing Chalobah before the transfer window closes and Football Insider have now revealed that Chelsea are willing to accept a bid of between £20m and £25m to allow the defender to depart.
Having come through the ranks at Chelsea's academy, the sale of the 25-year-old will represent pure profit to the Blues bottom line and will help the club balance the books after another expensive offseason.
The report adds that Wesley Fofana, Axel Disasi, Tosin Adarabioyo, Benoit Badiashile and Levi Colwill have all surpassed Chalobah in Chelsea's defensive pecking order.
Thus, Chalobah has been made aware that he is not a part of Maresca's plans for the upcoming season and has been told to train with the Under-21s and other out-of-favour players like Lukaku.
The 25-year-old made 17 appearances across all competitions for the club last term and was a regular toward the back end of the season under Mauricio Pochettino.
The centre-back is under contract at Stamford Bridge until June 2028, following a long-term extension he signed two years ago.
© Reuters
Aston Villa looking to bolster squad ahead of Champions League debut season
Aston Villa had a hugely successful 2023-24 Premier League season under Unai Emery, finishing in fourth place and securing their first-ever qualification for the Champions League since it was rebranded in 1992.
The Villans wasted no time in getting early transfer business completed, confirming the signings of Samuel Iling-Junior, Enzo Barrenechea and Ross Barkley at the start of last month.
Following the departures of Douglas Luiz and Kellyman, Emery's side acted swiftly to reinvest the funds raised in signing Amadou Onana and Ian Maatsen from Everton and Chelsea respectively in recent weeks.
It is understood that Villa are now looking to bolster their defensive options due to Diego Carlos being linked with a move away from Villa Park, while there are still question marks over the fitness of Tyrone Mings.
Additionally, there have been widespread rumours in recent days that Jacob Ramsey is looking for a move away from the club with Tottenham Hotspur believed to be interested in his services.
Devesh Jaganath
