According to Foot Mercato (h/t Express), Chelsea have been given encouragement regarding their pursuit to sign defender Milan Skriniar. Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur are also linked with the player, who has worked with their manager Antonio Conte before in Inter.
Skriniar has been a target for both London clubs for some time now. French champions Paris Saint-Germain are also in the race. A dominant centre-back,, he is a proven customer at the top level.
The encouragement has come in the form that Inter chairman Steven Zheng still considers the defender a sellable asset for the club. The reason is their weak financial status and having to balance the books. However, no club thus far has come with an offer even close to the price tag of £59m for the Slovakian international.
Skriniar, who is also his nation’s football team captain, has been at Inter for five seasons, making a total of 172 league appearances and winning one Serie A league title in 2021. He is a quality defender, who mainly plays as a centre-back, but can also do a job at right-back or as a defensive midfielder.
Under Conte, and also under Simone Inzaghi, the 27-year-old has mostly played on the right-hand side of the three-man central defence. He can easily play in the centre of the three as well.
He is confident on the ball, can make progress with it, can make great passes to midfield and diagonal switches is physically strong in challenges and reads the danger well.
All in all, Skriniar epitomises what a modern-day elite centre-back plays like. Boldness and dominance are the two words that describe the Slovak very well. He would be an excellent fit at Stamford Bridge.
From Chelsea’s view, this encouragement can come as good news. It is well documented that they are in pursuit to sign Leicester City centre-back Wesley Fofana. Their first two offers, the latest being of £70m, have already been rejected by the Foxes. It looks the Blues would have to fork out a lot to get him.
Why not skip the pursuit of Fofana and get a more experienced, and frankly better player in Skriniar with lesser money spent? Sounds like a better plan.
Chelsea find themselves in a difficult situation as their skipper, Reece James, continues to recover from a long-standing injury. The…
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has given the green light for French defender Malo Gusto to return following his injury…
The 22-year-old made a top class performance and marked an assist in Chelsea's 3-0 win against West Ham.
Chelsea have been subject to aggressive links with Victor Osimhen over the recently concluded summer transfer window, and the Blues…
Chelsea recently loaned Jadon Sancho on a season long load deal from Manchester United. (with an obligation to buy)
After a disappointing 2023-24 season under Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea wasted no time in parting ways with the Argentine manager. The…