Chelsea could be forced into looking elsewhere for a midfield recruit with rumours suggesting previous target Jude Bellingham is set to sign a new deal.
The Blues have been linked with the Borussia Dortmund midfielder in the past as Thomas Tuchel aims to bolster his squad ahead of their UEFA Champions League defence next season.
It was reported that Chelsea had their eyes on the former Birmingham City starlet but it now appears that they will be forced to consider other options.
According to The Sun, Bellingham could be set to sign a new contract as soon as tomorrow, extending his deal with Dortmund by a further two years until 2025.
His current wages of £50k a week are also apparently likely to increase, potentially killing any hopes that Chelsea had on a deal.
This would therefore force the Blues and Marina Granovskaia into a rethink about their potential targets with an apparent alternative being Atletico Madrid’s Saul Niguez.
Linked to Chelsea on numerous occasions, the Spaniard appeared somewhat unattainable for the Blues and as of the current time still has five years left to run on his contract at the Wanda Metropolitano.
Now though, reports from Spanish publication AS indicate that Atleti are willing to sell the 26-year-old this summer in order to finance arrivals such as Udinese’s Rodrigo de Paul.
It is also suggested that Chelsea could potentially seal a deal for as little as £34.2m (€40m) despite the midfielder’s £128m (€150m) release clause.
So with a deal for Bellingham now likely to be off the table - for the upcoming summer at the very least - the Blues have certainly been forced to look elsewhere, but a deal for Saul could certainly be an extremely attractive alternative option.
