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The transfer window slams shut at 11pm BST on Wednesday, which means that Chelsea have a little over two days left to reinforce the defence. Here’s where we stand.
We start with defender Marcos Alonso, who suddenly looks likeliest to join. According to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, Chelsea have made an improved offer for the Spanish player. From an initial bid of €20 million plus add-ons, the Blues are now offering €28 million with bonuses, edging themselves closer to the €30 million asked by the Italian club for Alonso.
A similar report has been brought forth by the Daily Mail, who claims that Chelsea will be paying £23 million for the Spaniard (around €26.9 million in current exchange rates) with bonuses. The Mail also says that Chelsea are set to reject Schalke 04's approach for Kurt Zouma. (Surprise!) The club, who have apparently not lost their minds completely, want the French defender to stay and recover from his ACL injury, and then contribute to our campaign this season once he's fully fit.
Meanwhile, Italian newspaper Il Tempo claims that Chelsea have offered €22 million, plus €3 million in bonuses, in an attempt to sign Lazio centre back Stefan de Vrij. Unfortunately, the approach was rejected as the Biancocelesti have set a €40 million price tag on the Dutch defender.
Leaving things late is almost never a good policy — Miazga’s and Kenedy’s loans are apparently on hold thanks to this situation, too — but at the very least, it seems that we're not repeating the mistake of settling for the likes of Michael Hector and Papy Djilobodji as our potential defensive reinforcements.