According to latest reports from Italian media outfit Calciomercato, Chelsea have offered €40m for Juventus defender Mattia Caldara. The Blues are in need of a defender and earlier there were strong reports of them linked with another one of Juventus’ defenders in Daniele Rugani.
Chelsea will be looking to improve from their fifth-place finish last season and they have handed over the club’s mantle to Maurizio Sarri. Antonio Conte might have delivered silverware even in his last season but that was not good enough to keep the Italian manager at Stamford Bridge.
One can expect some new ideas and a more attacking and attractive brand of football under Sarri. However, he will need to have the right personnel to deliver the needed results. Signing a defender should be one of the topmost priority for the club as the Blues struggled at the back last season.
Caldara joined Juventus in the 2017 January transfer window and is yet to make an appearance for them as he was straight away sent on a one and a half year loan to Atlanta. Last season, he made 34 appearances for them at the heart of the defence, where he was impressive more often than not.
Conte had built his team on the back of a strong defence, however, the likes of Gary Cahill and David Luiz struggled to get going and the Italian manager had to opt for the inexperienced pairing of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen last season. Both of the defenders showed promise but they are still relatively inexperienced and were found wanting on some occasions.
Caldara has represented the Italian national team once and is rated quite highly in his homeland. However, a move to the Premier League will certainly be the biggest test of his career. Juventus meanwhile will find it hard to sell him as they have not even given him a proper opportunity to prove himself and one can say that the player would be dealt a rough hand if he is sold.
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However, they might be tempted to sell him given the money which the Blues are offering right now. Having made the acquisition of Cristiano Ronaldo, the Old Lady will be looking to balance their books so one can expect some departures in the summer. Caldara has a lot of potential but paying €40m for the 24-year-old player could be risky as he is yet to be tested outside of Italy.
