Chelsea report: Blues to hijack Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski bid
Chelsea have been underwhelmed with Romelu Lukaku and could launch an audacious move for one of the best strikers in Europe
Chelsea are interested in signing Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, say reports, but they remain outsiders in the race for the Barcelona target as things stand.
The Blues are unable to buy or sell players until Roman Abramovich has sold the club, but that hasn’t stopped them from considering their options for the summer transfer market.
Romelu Lukaku has struggled for form since completing a £97.5 million return to Stamford Bridge from Inter Milan last summer, and the London club are now considering another move for a big-name striker.
The Guardian writes that the Poland striker, who is unwilling to extend a Bayern contract that expires in 2023, would prefer to join Barcelona and has already verbally agreed to a three-year deal at Camp Nou.
Bayern are resistant to the idea of a sale, despite the risk of then losing Lewandowski for nothing in a year’s time, and Barcelona’s financial problems mean they are unlikely to be able to afford a fee the German champions would regard as suitable.
Any problems between the two clubs could open the door for Chelsea, who are keeping close tabs on developments.
Thomas Tuchel is a huge fan of the striker, and it’s easy to see why – his record is phenomenal.
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The 33-year-old scored a staggering 35 goals in 34 Bundesliga games this season to clinch his seventh top scorer crown in nine years.
He has found the net 344 times in 375 appearances for Bayern in total, hitting over 40 goals in each of his eight seasons in Bavaria bar the first.
Lewandowski is as reliable a goal source as they come, and would almost certainly provide the answer to Chelsea’s striker problem – if they can convince him to move to England.
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Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.
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