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What’s the story?
Chelsea have made a stunning last-minute bid for Bayern Munich defender, Rafinha according to BILD. The German newspaper claims that Antonio Conte has identified the Brazilian as the alternative for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
BILD reports that a bid has been made already and that Chelsea are waiting for the German club to reply. However, Metro claims that Carlo Ancelotti won't be selling the defender as he see's him as the ideal backup player in his squad.
Rafinha has made 204 appearances for Bayern Munich since joining them in 2011. He was second-choice to Philipp Lahm and now is set to play second fiddle to Joshua Kimmich.
In case you didn’t know...
Chelsea had a deal agreed for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain with Arsenal. The Gunners were ready to sell him for £40 million but the player rejected the move after holding talks with Chelsea.
Antonio Conte wanted to sign him as a wing-back but the Englishman only wants to play as a central midfielder and was reluctant to join them.
The heart of the matter
Chelsea are now in panic mode and are going for the available options. Rafinha has emerged as the first one they have opted for but the bid is likely to be rejected according to reports.
Carlo Ancelotti wants to keep him at the club and is not willing to sell him for any cost.
What’s next?
Chelsea will have to look elsewhere if reports are to be believed. They have already tried to sign Sergi Roberto and are likely to go back and convince him to join them.
Author’s Take
Signing a wing back was always a part of the transfer plan for the summer. However, Chelsea failed to sign a one in 2 months.
Now with 2 days to go, they agreed a deal for Chamberlain but the player has rejected the move. He's not willing to play as a wing-back and is looking for a move to Liverpool.
Signing Rafinha won't be a good thing or a bad thing. He would bring in experience but will not be challenging Victor Moses for a spot too. He would simply play in the League Cup matches and whenever the manager decides to rest Moses.
What Chelsea needed was someone who could challenge the Nigerian for the starting XI spot. Chamberlain could have done that but he is not ready to play in that position.
