Borussia Mönchengladbach have made a new bid for young Chelsea centre-back Andreas Christensen, but it still falls short of what the Premier League side are believed to be holding out for.
The 20-year-old has a bright future ahead of him after a stellar 2015-16 season in Germany where he helped Gladbach reach the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds with a fourth place finish as one of their most prominent back four. He was also named the club’s Player of the Season.
Reports coming from German newspaper Bild are suggesting that Christensen is the target of an €18 million (£15.1m) bid from Gladbach and that Chelsea would be willing to do business at €22 million (£18.5m) but with a buy-back clause inserted in the deal.
Previous reports had suggested that Chelsea had firmly rejected any attempts from the German side to sign the Dane. The two clubs have done business together recently when the Blues sold Thorgan Hazard to Borussia Park.
Further bad news on the rumour mill for Chelsea youngsters is that Bertrand Traoré could be set to move to Ajax.
Whilst it would be a move to a bigger club than his previous loan spell at Vitesse in the Dutch Eredivisie, the 20-year-old broke into the Chelsea first-team last season, playing 10 Premier League matches and scoring twice.
It had been hoped that Antonio Conte would keep the youngster as part of his first-team plans after the promise shown last season. However, reports from Dutch newspaper de Telegraaf suggest that new Ajax head coach Peter Bosz wants the Chelsea youngster should he lose Arkadiusz Milik this summer.
Milik has been linked with a move to Napoli following the sale of Gonzalo Higuaín to Juventus and although a move to the Italian runners-up looks like a huge step up for the Polish striker, a move away from the Ajax Arena appears to be very much on the cards.
It was Bosz who also took Bertrand Traoré on loan to Vitesse for the 2014-15 season.
Whether Ajax are successful in bringing the Burkina Faso forward to the Netherlands, and whether on loan or a permanent deal, still remains to be seen. Traoré currently has two years left on his deal at Stamford Bridge and right now his chances of being in the Chelsea first-team for the upcoming season appear to be slim.
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