Chelsea continue to keep an eye on Southampton’s young midfielder Romeo Lavia despite their failed attempt to sign him last summer, according to ESPN.
Back in September, Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano raised a few eyebrows with his claim that Chelsea made a £50million deadline-day bid to sign Lavia from Southampton.
Bear in mind, it was quite a surprise given Lavia had just joined the Saints from Manchester City for a reported fee of £12mi a couple of months prior.
The move did not materialise, obviously, but based on the reported sum Chelsea were willing to fork out for the 18-year-old, he was likely on top of their list.
ESPN now claims that Chelsea have not given up on their pursuit of the Belgian talent and continue to track the player.
An earlier report from Romano suggested that any attempt to sign Lavia in January would be an uphill battle, which might have explained why Chelsea have not made another move so far.
It is easy, however, to see why Chelsea reportedly remain interested in the Southampton man.
Lavia, who has already made seven appearances in the Premier League this season, is a midfielder who can play as a lone number six as well as a number eight.
Considering both N’Golo Kante and Jorginho are in the final months of their contract at Stamford Bridge, Lavia is exactly the type of player that Chelsea will have to add to their squad in the summer.
The Blues have invested in attacking-minded midfielders; Carney Chukwuemeka and Cesare Casadei, in the summer, and potentially another one in Vasco da Gama’s Andrey Santos, so a highly-talented defensive midfielder such as Latvia would always be a welcome addition.
Keep up to date with all the latest Chelsea news and opinion by following The Chelsea Chronicle’s Facebook and Twitter accounts.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
