"He has basically packed his bag and he's ready to go" - Transfer expert says Chelsea target is eager to complete move to Stamford Bridge

Leicester City centre-back Wesley Fofana is reportedly close to sealing a permanent move to Chelsea in the ongoing transfer window as negotiations continue between the two clubs.

Fofana, who has five years left on his current deal at the King Power Stadium, has recently emerged as a transfer target for Chelsea. The Blues are currently in the market for a centre-back after the exits of Antonio Rudiger and Antonio Christensen earlier in the summer.

So far, the Foxes have turned down two offers from the Thomas Tuchel-coached side for Fofana – an initial bid of £60 million and an improved bid of £70 million. A third offer is expected to be lodged soon as personal terms have already been agreed, as per Fabrizio Romano.

Speaking to GiveMeSport, transfer expert Dean Jones shed light on the future of the 21-year-old France U21 international. He said:

"He has basically packed his bag and he's ready to go, standing by the door just waiting to be told when he can go. He's so eager for this to go through now, and Leicester are understanding of the situation."

According to The Guardian, Fofana has already intimated his desire to join the west London outfit to his current boss Brendan Rodgers. During Leicester City's 2-1 home loss to Southampton on August 20, he was left out of his team's squad for not being "in right frame of mind".

Fofana, who joined the Foxes from Saint-Etienne for a fee of £36.5 million in the summer of 2020, has made 52 appearances across all competitions for his current club. He registered only 1068 minutes of action last season owing to a long-term fibula fracture.

Meanwhile, Chelsea have roped in forward Raheem Sterling from Manchester City, centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli, and left-back Marc Cucurella from Brighton & Hove Albion in big-money deals this summer.

The Blues have also signed midfielders Carney Chukwuemeka from Aston Villa and Cesare Casadei from Inter Milan, and goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina from Chicago Fire on permanent deals.

Chelsea set to sign to Barcelona for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

According to Relevo, Chelsea are preparing an initial offer worth up to £20.4 million, including variables, for Barcelona striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The player is close to agreeing personal terms, worth double his current salary, with the Blues.

Aubameyang has earlier worked with Thomas Tuchel at Borussia Dortmund for two years. He is considered to be a stop-gap solution for the five-time Premier League winners, as per The Telegraph.