Here are the Chelsea morning headlines for Friday, August 7.
Chelsea ‘close to deal’ for Chilwell
Chelsea are ‘close’ to agreeing a £50million deal for Leicester City full-back Ben Chilwell, with the Foxes reportedly dropping their asking price for the England international.
Football Insider (via the Daily Express) claims Chilwell has asked to be allowed to leave the King Power Stadium this summer, with Chelsea his most likely destination.
The Blues are reportedly in talks with Leicester City over a fee, with the Foxes willing to drop their previous asking price of £80m in order to get a deal done quickly.
Frank Lampard is keen to bolster his defence ahead of the 2020/21 season following on from the signings of Timo Werner from RB Leipzig and Hakim Ziyech from Ajax.
Germany international makes claim about Chelsea summer signing
Bayern Munich and Germany defender Jerome Boateng says both Kai Havertz and Werner are “ready” to experience life in the Premier League.
Werner completed a move to Chelsea from RB Leipzig earlier in the summer, with Havertz the Blues’ next priority for the transfer window, and Boateng, who has played alongside both for Germany, had some words of wisdom.
“The Bundesliga teams give young talent time to grow,” he told the Guardian. “They feel well treated in Germany. They have time to grow slowly.
"Sometimes as a young player you have times when you don’t play so well. In some other countries, I think it is really strict - they have a bad game, they are out for weeks.
“In Germany they take care of them. All these players had really good seasons. Kai, Timo and (Jadon) Sancho are all really good talents. They have played for a long time now and I think they are all ready for the Premier League."
Antonio Rudiger gives view on potential Arsenal swoop for Willian
Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger says Arsenal would be signing one of the few players in football who “dictates the game” should they get a deal over the line for Willian.
The Brazilian winger is believed to be in talks with the Gunners over a move to north London with his contract expiring at Chelsea and Rudiger has opened up on what the player would bring to the Arsenal team and dressing room.
“Since day one of coming to Chelsea, he and David Luiz got me into the team and helped me out in the first couple of months because it was not that easy,” Rudiger told Mail Online.
“He is not the type of player who talks that much. He does his thing on the pitch, just like Eden Hazard. By playing, he shows what he is about.
“He is a guy who dictates the game and not many players in the world have this type of quality.”
