Chelsea Steal March On Liverpool After Tabling £23m Bid For German Star

The opening of the summer transfer window is fast approaching so we’ll bring you all the latest transfer rumours and gossip from around the globe. Today, Chelsea make their move for Antonio Rudiger….

Chelsea have stolen a march on Liverpool after submitting a formal offer worth £23.2m for Roma centre-back Antonio Rudiger, according to the Express.

The German international has just come off the back of an impressive season on loan at Roma from Stuttgart where he played 37 times in all competitions to help the Italian outfit finish third in the Serie A table and qualify for the Champions League next season.

Roma decided to take-up the option to turn his loan in to a permanent move after paying Stuttgart £7.73m earlier this week but it looks as though they are ready to cash-in and turn a quick profit on the defender.

There has been plenty of interest being shown in Rudiger from throughout Europe with the Express claiming that Chelsea and Liverpool are keen on luring the 23-year-old to the Premier League while Borussia Dortmund and PSG are also understood to be interested.

However, it looks as though Chelsea have now stolen a march on their rivals as the newspaper is citing a report coming from Italian outlet Il Tempo that suggests the Blues have tabled a formal offer for Rudiger worth £23.2m.

New Chelsea boss Antonio Conte isn’t due to officially take over the reigns at Stamford Bridge until after he’s fulfilled his duties as Italy boss at Euro 2016 but it looks like the 46-year-old is already getting his summer transfer activity underway.

John Terry has signed a new one-year extension but a long-term replacement for the Blues’ skipper is likely to be on Conte’s agenda and it appears he’s identified Rudiger as the man for the job.

We’ll have to wait and see how Roma respond to Chelsea’s opening offer but the Express claim they are already eyeing Lyon defender Samuel Umtiti as a potential replacement for Rudiger, so it’s likely that the German international will be leaving the Stadio Olimpico this summer.

READ MORE –> Chelsea transfer news | Liverpool transfer news

I think he’d be an excellent signing for Chelsea as he’s already a top class centre-back with plenty of time left in his career to develop further and he could learn from the likes of Terry before taking over in 12 months time.

However, until a deal is agreed there is still time for the likes of Liverpool to hijack Chelsea’s proposed deal and Jurgen Klopp could certainly do with a talented defender like Rudiger in his new-look squad next season.