AS Roma defender Kostas Manolas will be available to Chelsea and Arsenal for £32.75m, according to Pagine Romaniste.
The Greek centre-back has signed a new deal with the Italian Serie A outfit which includes a release clause, and interest could be coming his way in January or next summer as a result, says talkSPORT.
Juventus and Zenit St. Petersburg have also been linked with Manolas, whose recent contract has landed him a payrise from £2.5m to £3.1m,
Roma’s sporting director has stated the release clause would only be eligible for non-Italian clubs, which is good news for Arsenal and Chelsea given their reported interest over the summer.
Arsenal are blessed with options in defence this season – Per Mertesacker, Shkodran Mustafi, Laurent Koscielny, Rob Holding, Calum Chambers, Nacho Monreal – but with Koscielny now 32, Mertesacker retiring next summer and Chambers & Holding struggling for playing time, a new centre-back might be needed.
It’s unknown if the Gunners would pay over £30m for the 26-year-old, however. Chelsea might be a bit more open to signing Manolas given they could be losing David Luiz and aren’t blessed with as much depth at the back.
The Blues did sign Antonio Rudiger in the summer to strengthen their options in defence, but Manolas is believed to be a player they’ve had their eye on for some time.
Stats from Transfermarkt.
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