Antonio Conte is trying to bolster his back line after a hectic first half of the season saw his preferred three starting almost every game. Their loss against Tottenham was a clear indication that the Blues have to re-shuffle on occasions or the opponents would see through their gameplay.
And as per reports, Chelsea are ready to table a bid for German club Schalke’s left-back Sead Kolasinac. Although clubs like Arsenal, Liverpool and Juventus have also been monitoring the defender for a long time now, Conte wants to make a quick move to pluck him up.
Conte has been quite successful in his transfers since coming to Chelsea. David Luiz and Marcos Alonso have produced solid displays at the back, playing an important role in Chelsea’s brilliant league run. And Conte sees Kolasinac as his backup at Chelsea.
With Chelsea progressing into the fourth round of the FA Cup and an almost assured Champions League qualification given their current league position, Chelsea would definitely need some squad depth. And Kolasinac could be an ideal defender to have in the team. A youth product of Karlsruher SC, Kolasinac has played in clubs like Hoffenheim VfB Stuttgart, before he finally made a move to Schalke.
At above 6 feet, Kolasinac has the perfect frame as an ideal Premier League defender and his aggression adds to his prowess. His perfect sense of timing makes him really strong in the air and Chelsea would immensely gain from his signing. Another great attribute would be his brilliant sense of positioning as he reads the game extremely well.
After being one of the best performers in the 2013/14 Bundesliga season, the Bosnian international suffered an ACL injury at the start of the following season and he was out for six months.
He has, however, returned to action, and with regular game time, he will be back to his finest. A concern for Kolasinac would be his passing. He has an average of 67% in passing accuracy and it would have to improve if he has to fit in the three-man defence of Conte. Schalke would definitely not want one of their main players to leave the club and the manager Markus Weinzierl is expected to offer him a new contract.
Chelsea have been linked with a lot of defenders this month, which includes the likes of Lascelles, Manolas and more. But, Kolasinac would definitely be a more intelligent option for Conte at the back.
