Chelsea have been trying to make progress in their pursuit of Stefan de Vrij, a report claims, with contact underway with Inter Milan.
Chelsea and Inter are currently discussing the future of Romelu Lukaku. He returned to the Premier League side from their Serie A counterparts last summer. However, he has been less prolific in front of goal and may want to retrace his steps.
Inter would also want Lukaku back, but need to tread carefully from a financial viewpoint. Hence, the option of De Vrij being included in the opposite direction as a counterweight was recently suggested.
It appears the Dutchman is of interest to Chelsea after all. According to FCInterNews, Chelsea have “come forward” for De Vrij.
Inter – whose contract for the centre-half only has one year left on it – have made him available for a transfer fee of €15m, which equates roughly to £12.8m.
From his perspective, De Vrij is seeking a salary of €5m per season, or approximately £82,000 per week. Inter agreed in principle to give him that last year, but no terms have been signed and they now want him to take a pay cut.
What’s more, the agent of his fellow defender Alessandro Bastoni has ruled out the chances of the Italian leaving this summer. Therefore, as Inter target Gleison Bremer from Torino, they may have to sacrifice De Vrij instead.
The pieces could be falling into place for Chelsea, who need new defenders in the wake of the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. There are also doubts about the future of Cesar Azpilicueta.
De Vrij deal makes much sense for Chelsea
Hence, De Vrij would be a useful reinforcement to fill any voids. Indeed, he is comfortable playing in a back three, having done so for Lazio and Inter during his time in Serie A.
At the age of 30, he has a level of experience that only Thiago Silva could better at Chelsea if Azpilicueta was to leave as well. And financially, he is well within reach for a club of Chelsea’s stature.
Therefore, it is easy to see why Chelsea may be wanting to move forward with the chance to sign De Vrij. He would be a good value-for-money reinforcement in an area of need within Thomas Tuchel’s squad.