Chelsea 'leading race' for 'phenomenal' £96m star at Stamford Bridge | OneFootball

Chelsea are the club who have been leading the race for RB Leipzig and Croatia defender Josko Gvardiol, journalist Pete O’Rourke has told GiveMeSport.

However, O’Rourke thinks things have become much more difficult for the Blues following the 20-year-old’s exploits at the World Cup.

Chelsea transfer news – Josko Gvardiol

Transfer insider Dean Jones recently told GMS that Chelsea are eager to wrap up a deal for Gvardiol.

The west London club signed Wesley Fofana and Kalidou Koulibaly during the summer, but it appears that they are still keen to add another centre-back to their squad.

Gvardiol is clearly the man they want at Stamford Bridge, but he is unlikely to come cheap.

According to Sky Sport reporter Florian Plettenberg, the Croatia international has a €110m (around £96m) release clause that becomes active in 2024. Whether Leipzig can convince him to stay at the club for that long, though, remains to be seen.

What has Pete O’Rourke said about Josko Gvardiol and Chelsea?

O’Rourke says Chelsea have been leading the race for Gvardiol but thinks things have become much more complicated for them in recent weeks.

Speaking to GMS, the journalist said: “I don’t think it’s going to be an easy race for Chelsea to win, but they’ve been the ones who have been leading the race from the start for Gvardiol.

“But it’s definitely got a lot harder for them in recent weeks following his World Cup exploits, and RB Leipzig are pretty adamant that he won’t be leaving in January. If he doesn’t leave in January, I’m sure there’ll be a potential move for him in the summer with a host of top clubs keen on him.”

How did Josko Gvardiol perform at the World Cup?

He was easily one of the standout defenders of the tournament.

It is easy to see why his international team-mate and Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic described him as “phenomenal” in a recent interview with TUTTOmercatoWEB.

Ultimately, if Chelsea and Graham Potter are looking for central defensive reinforcements, then the Leipzig star has to be one of the names on the top of their list, which does seem to be the case. But at this point, it would be a huge surprise if they did not face serious competition for his signature.