Chelsea Told Defender Not For Sale As Blues Meet With Kalidou Koulibaly's Agent For Transfer Talks

Chelsea have been handed a double update in their pursuits of Bayern Munich defender Dayot Upamecano and Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly. 

Thomas Tuchel is searching for defensive reinforcements this summer, needing a rebuild at the back due to the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. 

The back line currently consists of Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, Trevoh Chalobah, Levi Colwill and Ethan Ampadu.

Nathan Ake is a top target for Chelsea this summer and personal terms have been agreed with the Dutch international, while Matthijs de Ligt is of interest but Bayern Munich believe they have the transfer edge when it comes to the Juventus defender. 

Tuchel needs arrivals as soon as possible before the start of the 2022/23 season and other names have now been identified. 

Bayern’s Upamecano and Napoli’s Koulibaly are both considered as options among the Blues’ defensive shortlist. 

Upamecano, 23, only joined from RB Leipzig last summer after his release clause was activated, penning a five-year contract at the Allianz Arena. 

However, with Bayern’s interest in De Ligt, Upamecano could have been available, alerting Chelsea to an alternative this summer. 

But as reported by Sky Germany, the France international is not for sale, handing Chelsea a blow in any hopes they had of bringing him to Stamford Bridge. 

Meanwhile, Koulibaly has been linked with Chelsea on many occasions. The 31-year-old has just one year remaining on his current deal in Naples, and could be on the move this summer. 

Chelsea, Barcelona and Juventus have all been linked - it’s a transfer triangle this summer, which could all hinge on where De Ligt ends up. 

It has been previously reported that Koulibaly’s agent, Fali Ramadani, has informed clubs that they will need to pay €40 million to land the Senegal international. 

Now fresh reports from Gianluca Di Marzio have confirmed that Ramadani met with Chelsea on Monday, with the Blues eyeing him as an alternative to De Ligt. 

They believe De Ligt will join Bayern Munich this summer, leaving them to scout out other targets to ensure Tuchel has new defenders to work with for next season.

Chelsea could still lose another defender this summer. Cesar Azpilicueta is wanted by Barcelona, who are wanting to bring him to the Camp Nou. 

Talks remain ongoing, co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali headed to Spain last week for discussions with the Catalan club, and an agreement was reached regarding one player. 

However, who the agreement was for remains unknown after Azpilicueta, Marcos Alonso and Frenkie de Jong were all discussed. 

Chelsea appear to have their eggs in many baskets for defenders. It’s now a case of who will arrive, not if a new centre-back will be signed.