Chelsea has suffered a blow in pursuit of Juventus centre-back Giorgio Chiellini after the Italian defender confirmed his desire to put pen to paper on a new deal with the Serie A giants. According to a report in the English press, the 33-year-old is ready to sign a new deal to stay at Juventus amidst speculation linking him to Chelsea. The Italian international has been a rock in the backline for his club and Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has recently shown interest in bringing the centre-back to Stamford Bridge. The Italian manager is in dire need of a few additions in the January transfer window but the vast size of the Chelsea squad has been a source of constant annoyance.
Chiellini would have been an excellent addition to the Blues squad and was expected to replace the exit-bound David Luiz in Conte’s team. However, the Juventus centre-back has recently confirmed his interest in extending his contract with the Serie A giants which all but ended Chelsea’s hopes of a possible transfer. In an interview with Sky Italia, Chiellini was quoted to have said:
‘Extend my contract with Juventus? I’ll meet the club after the holidays to discuss the contract extension and I think that there won’t be any surprise.
‘Juventus feels like family to me and I couldn’t be better.’
The Blues of London still knows that it’s not over until the fat lady sings or in this case, the old lady of Turin sings as the 33-year-old is yet to ink a new deal with the Italian champions. So there is still a chance for them to convince the Italian to prefer a move to Stamford Bridge. The ex Fiorentina player’s contract is set to run out in the summer so he is free to speak to other foreign clubs this January.
Chelsea are currently sitting in third place in the Premier League standings and are looking to fight in all four competitions going into the second half of the season. The potential departure of David Luiz has paved the way for a new defender to come in and take his place in Antonio Conte’s squad. Chiellini might a perfect fit for the Londoners as he has a wealth of experience at the elite level and can also play a sporadic role in the Chelsea squad. He has featured in 19 matches for Juventus this season.
It remains to be seen whether the Italian keeps his word and signs a new contract with Juventus or if he joins Antonio Conte’s revolution at Chelsea in the summer.
