Breaking: Chelsea set sights on a sensational £25m rated defender
Sep 28, 2016 at 11:05 AM
Chelsea are keen to sign Burnley central defender Michael Keane in a surprise £25m deal, according to reports.
The Blues are in need of a new central defender as they are in a huge defensive crisis after the ankle injury of John Terry which the skipper has suffered against Swansea in Liberty Stadium two weeks ago.
The over reliance on their skipper meant the Blues defense has looked out of sorts in his absence as the back line looks penetrable for opposition attackers as Chelsea lost against Liverpool at home and has also suffered a 3-0 loss against Arsenal in the London derby.
Manager Antonio Conte is looking for new defensive players as he is keen to change the club playing style to 3-5-2 from the existing 4-3-3 which he actually tried midway through the London derby.
The pairing of Gary Cahill and David Luiz has looked miserable at the centre of the park while Branislav Ivanovic is also completely out of sorts as he is reaching the fag end of his career.
According to Daily Mirror, the Blues have made a formal enquiry about the Burnley defender Michael Keane as Conte is interested in signing him in an attempt to resolve their defensive crisis as they go along into the season.
Michael Keane is a Manchester United academy prodigy who has made the move to Burnley in 2015 for £2m and has been a cornerstone of their defense last season as Burnley got promoted to Premier League this season from Championship.
The 23-year old has had some problems to get used to the highest level of football in England as he is still finding his feet in the Premier League. Their team has so far let in eight goals in their opening six games as they managed a better defensive record than Chelsea who have let in nine goals so far in the league.
Manager Antonio Conte believes he could be a long-term successor for Blues captain, John Terry as the defense is currently heavily reliant on the 35-year old.