MX23RW : Sunday, January 12 12:45:53| >> :120:4027:4027:

Chelsea 'readying £111.7m bid for Real Madrid's Federico Valverde'

Chelsea 'readying £111.7m bid for Federico Valverde'
© Reuters
Chelsea are reportedly preparing a mammoth £111.7m offer for Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde, who was previously linked with Liverpool.

Chelsea are reportedly preparing to approach Real Madrid with a mammoth €130m (£111.7m) offer for Uruguayan midfielder Federico Valverde.

The Blues have lost a number of their long-serving lynchpins over the past several months, firstly allowing Jorginho to join London rivals Arsenal on deadline day in January.

Following their underwhelming 12th-placed finish in the Premier League last season, Mauricio Pochettino has allowed several other midfielders to move on, namely Mateo Kovacic, N'Golo Kante, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mason Mount.

However, the Blues are yet to add any new lynchpins to their ranks ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, instead strengthening their attack with Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson, Angelo Gabriel and Diego Moreira.

As a result, the quintet of Enzo Fernandez, Conor Gallagher, Cesare Casadei, Andrey Santos and Carney Chukwuemeka have been deployed in midfield during pre-season, although the latter trio lack experience at the top level.

Chelsea's Conor Gallagher in action with Real Madrid's Federico Valverde on April 18, 2023© Reuters

Chelsea are believed to have reached an agreement to sign Rennes' Lesley Ugochukwu for £23.2m, but the Frenchman is also only 19 years of age and may be loaned out to sister club Strasbourg for the 2023-24 season.

Ugochukwu could alternatively be integrated straight into the first team as an alternative to Brighton & Hove Albion's Moises Caicedo, whose £100m price tag could scupper a summer move to Stamford Bridge.

However, Spanish outlet Nacional - via Football365 - alleges that Chelsea are preparing an even more lucrative bid for Valverde, whose future with Real Madrid has been called into question recently.

The 25-year-old's Bernabeu contract is not due to expire until 2027, but the arrivals of Jude Bellingham and Arda Guler will lead to greater competition for places in Carlo Ancelotti's midfield.

Nevertheless, Real president Florentino Perez has rebuffed offers for Valverde so far this summer, with Liverpool reported to have made an €80m (£68.7m) approach earlier in the window.

Federico Valverde celebrates scoring for Real Madrid on November 2, 2022© Reuters

Saudi Arabian duo Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal have supposedly come forward with bids of €100m (£85.9m), but their advances were also rebuffed, and it is unclear if Valverde has any interest in leaving Europe at this point in his career.

Despite their rivals' failed offers, the report claims that Chelsea are hoping to 'break down' Perez's resistance, and Valverde could be offered a quintuple-your-money contract by Pochettino's side.

The former Penarol youngster joined Real Madrid's Castilla outfit in 2016 and has gone on to make 204 appearances for the senior team, scoring 18 goals and setting up 15 more in the process.

Valverde - who can also play as a right winger - enjoyed his most productive season in front of goal during the 2022-23 campaign, banking 12 strikes and seven assists from 56 matches in all tournaments.

Chelsea take on West London rivals Fulham in their penultimate pre-season match on Sunday evening before concluding their United States tour against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday.

ID:519868:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect7650:
Written by
Ben Knapton

Click here for more stories about Federico Valverde

Click here for more stories about Chelsea

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Chimuanya Ugochukwu in action for Rennes on November 3, 2022
Read Next:
Chelsea 'agree deal for Lesley Ugochukwu'
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
FT
Steelers
14-28
Ravens
6pm
Broncos
@
Bills
9.30pm
Packers
@
Eagles
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool19144147192846
2Arsenal20117239182140
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest20124429191040
4Chelsea20106439241536
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle20105534221235
6Manchester CityMan City2010463627934
7Bournemouth209653023733
8Aston Villa209563032-232
9Fulham207943027330
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2061043029128
11Brentford208393835327
12Tottenham HotspurSpurs20731042301224
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd206592328-523
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham206592439-1523
15Crystal Palace204972128-721
16Everton193881525-1017
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2044123145-1416
18Ipswich TownIpswich2037102035-1516
19Leicester CityLeicester2035122344-2114
20Southampton2013161244-326


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!