Sevilla defender Jules Kounde and RB Leipzig's Josko Gvardiol have been earmarked as 'two important targets' for Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel this summer as he looks to rebuild his Blues defence.
Chelsea have lost Antonio Rudiger to Real Madrid on a free transfer, which was confirmed on 2 June, and are set to see Andreas Christensen depart for Barcelona when his contract expires at Stamford Bridge.
Tuchel will be given the funds by the new consortium led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital with around £200m set to be made available in the transfer market.
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Levi Colwill and Ethan Ampadu will return from their respective loan spells at Huddersfield Town and Venezia, joining the likes of Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, Trevoh Chalobah and Malang Sarr back at Cobham when they report back for pre-season duty on 2 July.
With the departures of Rudiger and Christensen, Tuchel has already admitted it will be a case of replacing them before they can improve the squad.
"Players are going out. We are rebuilding, not improving the squad. We are rebuilding. This is always challenging but we are up for the challenge."
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Targets have been identified and they include Kounde, who was on the verge of making the switch last summer before a transfer fell through, while Gvardiol has also been shortlist.
But Gianluca Di Marzio has revealed Chelsea's pursuits of the duo could depend on the future outlook under the new ownership.
He told Wettfreunde: "Kounde they wanted to get him last year too. They tried a lot and it was nearly done and due to some problems, it collapsed.
"Kounde is a top player, top defender in Europe.
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"It depends on the project of the new chairman, how's the budget, how are the priorities.
"Surely without Rudiger and Christensen, they have to buy minimum one defender so I think Kounde is a top choice.
"Gvardiol is a good player, not top as Kounde but surely these are two important targets and it depends on what the board wants to do.
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"And, I repeat, on who will decide the strategy of the market. Marina Granovskaia or another sports director. We still don't know who is going to be in charge.
"Tuchel, obviously knows what the club needs but it depends on who is the technical person who has to get Chelsea's deals done - if it is Marina or not. I think this is the most important thing to solve, quickly."
Topics: Jules Kounde, Chelsea Transfer News & Rumours, Chelsea, Thomas Tuchel
Matthew Debono