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Sport1 chief reporter Patrick Berger has claimed that there is no possibility of a swap deal involving Chelsea forward Timo Werner and RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol.
According to transfer news expert Fabrizio Romano (via Metro), Gvardiol is one of the top names on the Blues’ wishlist for the summer. He, however, claimed that Leipzig had no intention of letting one of their best players go, as they consider Gvardiol to be an “untouchable” asset.
Berger added to Romano’s claim, hinting that while Werner could find his way back to Leipzig, there was no possibility of Gvardiol coming the other way in return. He tweeted:
“Timo Werner wants to leave Chelsea, as reported in March. Leipzig pushing to sign him. There was a meeting between the clubs few days ago. Werner is keen to join his former club and set for a huge salary cut. A swap deal with Joško Gvardiol is no topic.”
Presumably a Chelsea fan, CFCVulcano asked Berger whether it was possible for the Blues to sign Gvardiol separately. Here’s what the expert had to say:
“No. Unsaleable this summer! 🚫”
The 20-year-old centre-back, whose current valuation stands at €35 million (via Transfermarkt), played 46 games for Leipzig last season across all competitions, recording two goals and three assists.
Before Gvardiol, the Blues tried their best to signed Sevilla’s Jules Kounde to Stamford Bridge. The player, however, ultimately picked Xavi’s Barcelona ahead of Thomas Tuchel’s side.
Chelsea could have to pay an unusually high premium for a decent defender this summer
Tuchel lost two of his trusted central defenders, Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger, earlier this summer. Both centre-backs left the club as free agents, meaning the Blues did not receive any money from their new clubs.
Kalidou Koulibaly has been brought in from Napoli for a €38 million fee, but Tuchel is admittedly eager to reinforce his backline further. Kounde could have solved this problem for good, but his last-minute snub left the Stamford Bridge unit in a pickle.
As all clubs are now aware of their desperation for a defender, the Londone outfit could struggle to sign defenders for a decent price. Clubs are likely to jack up the price in anticipation of making a fortune selling their players.
Since the Premier League giants have not generated anything from selling their defenders, they could struggle to meet the clubs’ asking price.
Failing to sign any new defenders would see the Blues kick off the 2022-23 campaign in a considerably weaker guise (at the back) than last season.
