Chelsea join Arsenal in race for star Argentine hit-man
Aug 9, 2016 at 1:02 PM
Antonio Conte has been a busy man this summer. He took over the Stamford Bridge outfit earlier in the summer and has tried to stamp his authority on the squad in the transfer window.
He has let go a number of fringe players, some of them on loan, in order create a squad at the Bridge that will help Conte in his adventures in the Premier League.
The manager has already added to the midfield and attack of the unit and has made the squad stronger, but he is still in the market for a defender and another striker.
Diego Costa, who was superb in the title-winning campaign, has been linked with a move away from the club and though Conte has revealed that Costa will not be leaving the club easily, it is understood that the manager wants to be safe and have enough options to go to in crunch times.
His search for Everton’s Romelu Lukaku ran for more than a week and did not yield substantial evidence that they can get their man this summer. This has seen the club turn their attention to Italy.
Argentine international Mauro Icardi, who has been in sensational form for the Serie A side Inter Milan is now reportedly on the radar of the Blues this summer.
The 23-year-old scored 16 goals in 34 appearances in Italy last season and has attracted interests from another London outfit in Arsenal.
Arsene Wenger is desperate for a striking option next season and has been scouting the 23-year old for almost a month now. However, he has not been able to strike a deal at any price and is now getting ready to offer the Italian club £29.77m + Olivier Giroud in a cut-price deal for the striker who is valued at £50m by Inter Milan.
Chelsea, however, will have to cough up the asking price as it is already evident that Inter are not budging and bargaining but having already spent big on Michy Batshuayi, it will be interesting to see if Conte decides to spend so much again on a similar player.
The amount of quality available in the market has reduced drastically and that has seen a sharp increase in the prices and it is to be seen if Arsenal or Chelsea can meet Icardi’s asking price in the coming days.