Chelsea Ready To Battle Arsenal Over £50m Attacker As Conte Plots Double Swoop

Managers are now pressing ahead with their plans for the summer transfer window so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip from around the globe. Today, Chelsea are linked with Riyad Mahrez…

Chelsea have joined Arsenal in the race to sign £50m-rated Leicester City attacker Riyad Mahrez as Antonio Conte plots a double swoop that also involves Alex Sandro, according to the Telegraph.

Conte led Chelsea to their fifth Premier League title in his first season in charge but he knows he needs to further strengthen their squad if they’re to successfully defend their crown and compete in the Champions League.

The Italian coach is seemingly keen to add to his attacking options as the Telegraph claim Chelsea are showing a keen interest in Mahrez after he made it clear he wants to leave Leicester this summer.

The Algerian international handed in a written transfer request late last month stating he wants to further his career by joining a bigger club after the Foxes finished 12th in the table last season.

Arsenal have been tipped to renew their interest in Mahrez after Arsene Wenger was quoted by the Independent as saying last week that he was keen in the attacker and hinted he could submit a formal bid this summer.

Wenger is under pressure to build a squad capable of sustaining a title challenge next year after missing out on the top four and Mahrez could be viewed as a potential replacement for Alexis Sanchez – who’s about to enter the final year of his contract.

The Telegraph claim that Mahrez wants to stay in the Premier League and is keen on moving to London so you’d assume the 26-year-old would be open to joining either Arsenal or Chelsea over the coming weeks.

However, Mahrez is tied to a long-term contract at the King Power and the paper says the London duo are unlikely to meet Leicester’s £50m valuation so they will need to lower their asking price if a deal is to be agreed.

Any move for Mahrez could be part of a double swoop by Conte as the Telegraph claim the Chelsea boss is also eyeing a move for Juventus left-back Alex Sandro this summer.

Conte is in the market for another full-back to compete with Marcos Alonso and the newspaper says he wants Sandro but may have to pay the Serie A champions a whopping £45m.

READ MORE –> Arsenal transfer news | Chelsea transfer news

Sandro is capable of playing at left-back or as a left wing-back so he’ll give Conte the option to switch systems next season as the Blues boss is keen to build a squad comfortable playing both 4-2-4 and 3-4-3.

We’ll have to wait and see if Chelsea make formal moves for Mahrez and Sandro but they would both be excellent signings and would only further strengthen the champions’ squad ahead of next season.