According to La Repubblica (via Metro), Chelsea have submitted an opening bid of £31 million to sign Inter Milan defender Denzel Dumfries this month.
The London giants have received an injury boost today with Reece James’ return to full training, but they are still looking to bring in another right-back before the transfer window closes.
Dumfries has been widely speculated as the main transfer target and La Repubblica claim that Chelsea have made a formal bid worth £31 million to sign the Dutch international.
However, Inter are looking for much more for the 26-year-old. The report says that the Milan heavyweights are looking for a figure close to £48 million to sell the talented full-back.
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James suffered a knee injury during the first part of the season. He was out on the sidelines for more than two months before his comeback against Bournemouth in late December. However, he managed just 53 minutes against them before suffering a recurrence of the same injury.
After nearly three weeks, the Chelsea graduate has returned to team training with his teammates but manager Graham Potter would want to handle him with extra caution this time around, considering he has become injury prone over the past couple of campaigns.
Hence, the London club need a quality right-back for competition. Dumfries would be a fantastic signing with his vast experience and ability to play in different formations. He operates as a right wing-back for Inter and Netherlands, but can also feature in a back four.
Inter Milan currently want £17 million more than what Chelsea have offered for Dumfries. There should be fresh talks in the coming days and Chelsea may go in with an improved offer. Owner Todd Boehly has made his intention clear to spend big to salvage Chelsea’s season.
Potter’s side are presently 10th in the Premier League table with 28 points, already 10 behind the last Champions League spot held by Manchester United, who have a match in hand. Chelsea need a huge turnaround if they want to make the top four again.
