Chelsea could use Hakim Ziyech as makeweight in a bid to sign France international

Transfer News: Chelsea are ready to offer Hakim Ziyech to sign Adrien Rabiot from Juventus

According to Italian publication Calciomercato (h/t Daily Mail), Chelsea are ready to use winger Hakim Ziyech in a swap deal with Juventus to sign midfielder Adrien Rabiot.

Ziyech was on the periphery in terms of getting regular game time under former Blues boss Thomas Tuchel. Nothing much has changed since the change in manager, with Graham Potter not giving him a start yet in his eight games in charge.

It remains to be seen whether the former Ajax star is going to get minutes in games before the World Cup break. Their front line is not firing at the moment, with only one goal scored from open play in the last three games. So, there could be space for the winger to start one of the upcoming games.

Chelsea are said to be interested in Juventus midfielder Rabiot, and they could include Ziyech in the swap deal. The latter has been linked with another Italian side AC Milan for a possible move in January.

Rabiot is in the final year of his contract in Turin and is in the same situation as two Chelsea midfielders Jorginho and N’Golo Kante. The former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder was linked with Manchester United in the summer, but nothing materialised then.

With the Blues in need of midfield reinforcements, is Rabiot the right option to fill one of the slots? It is a tough question because the Frenchman hasn’t done much in the Juventus team consistently to attract attention. He is a quality player though, but he is yet to reach the heights that many expected when he was at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).

Chelsea would have better options available to shore up the midfield department. They have been linked with Frenkie de Jong once again for a January move. If there is to be a choice between de Jong and Rabiot, the club would be wise to do everything to sign the former irrespective of their failed attempts in the summer.

More Chelsea News:

• Graham Potter gives his verdict on the draw with Manchester United
• Transfer News: Kevin Campbell tips Chelsea to sign Cristiano Ronaldo on loan in January
• Chelsea receive possible encouragement from Frenkie de Jong over a January move

But if nothing else pops up and Rabiot is the best we can manage, then it’s a move that will perhaps suit our needs – at least to the extent of adding numbers to our squad. Denis Zakaria is set to return to Juventus after his loan spell while Jorginho (30) and Kante (31) aren’t spring chickens anymore and could leave as free agents next year.