Blow for Chelsea as La Liga giants step up pursuit of 25-year-old defensive lynchpin

Chelsea dealt transfer blow as Barcelona intensify efforts to sign Andreas Christensen

According to the Spanish news outlet Mundo Deportivo (h/t Football.London), Chelsea have been dealt a transfer blow as Barcelona have intensified their efforts to sign Andreas Christensen in the summer transfer window. There has been growing uncertainty over the Danish ace’s future since he has not penned a new deal to extend his stay at Stamford Bridge.

Christensen has entered the final six months of his contract, meaning he will become a free agent at the end of this season. He was expected to sign a new deal back in November. It appeared to be just a matter of time before the 25-year-old committed to a fresh deal.

Talks have stalled since and Barcelona have taken advantage of that situation and expressed their desire to sign the 25-year-old on a free transfer. They are ready to offer him a four-year contract with an option to extend it by another year. They are boosted by his new representatives, who have had close relations with the Catalans, which spells further trouble for the Blues.

Major headache

We could be in for some challenging months up ahead if we cannot get the Dane to sign a renewal and pledge his future with us. The cost of losing him could be too high, considering how he is a perfect mix between the veterans and youngsters in our squad.

That’s not all, as we would want to keep our impressive defence intact. It is all the more important given how integral the backline has been to Thomas Tuchel’s success at the club. Restructuring the options when it already offers solidity at the moment is not a good idea, so we must do everything to keep the Blues defender at the club.

The La Liga side could offer the Danish international more minutes as they need additions in the centre of the defence. However, we have a better sporting project and their financial crisis means that we have an advantage in that regard as well. As such, Marina Granovskaia has to use that as a means to convince Christensen to sign a new deal with us.

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The centre-back has a great environment at Chelsea to succeed as Thiago Silva and Cesar Azpilicueta are nearing the latter stages of their playing careers. He could take the mantle from them and lead us towards more success in the future.

Not just that, Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger will see their contracts expire at the end of this campaign, meaning he could have more opportunities if one or both of them leaves next summer. Time will tell how this situation would pan out in the coming months but the club hopefully has a plan in place to retain their best assets.