Answer to Chelsea’s defensive woes could be Barcelona-bound
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Much has been made about Chelsea’s need for new central defenders since Antonio Conte took charge of the Blues in the summer.
The Italian has been linked with a number of new faces at Stamford Bridge, including the likes of Leonardo Bonucci and Kalidou Koulibaly of Juventus and Napoli respectively.
A failure to land any of their preferred targets meant the London club ended up resigning David Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain on transfer Deadline Day, but there could have been a solution right under the Blues’ noses all along.
Like many young players on the books at Chelsea, 20-year-old centre-half Andreas Christensen is out on loan.
The Dane is spending his second consecutive season at German outfit Borussia Monchengladbach, having impressed in the Bundesliga last term.
In fact, the former Brondby youth player’s performances for the Foals last term were good enough to land him the club’s player of the year award and now another European giant has started to take notice.
According to the Sun on Sunday, Barcelona have emerged as a potential suitor for Christensen’s signature, as they seek a long-term replacement for Gerard Pique.
The paper suggests a bid of around £20m could be tabled by the Catalan club, but considering how desperate Chelsea are for centre-backs that’s an offer they should almost certainly turn down.
Christensen has played in all six of Gladbach’s league outings so far this term and is also gaining valuable Champions League experience where he’s battling Barcelona in Group C.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
