Chelsea Make £60m Bid For Premier League Star: Club Issues Update
Jan 3, 2017 at 11:16 PM
Chelsea have reportedly made a whopping £60million bid for Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk.
The Netherlands international, who joined Southampton in 2015 from Celtic, has emerged as one of the Premier League’s top defenders and has been linked with several top clubs including Liverpool and Manchester City.
Time and again, Southampton has claimed that the centre-back is not for sale but The Express has reported that the Blues are confident of luring the player away from the Saint Mary’s with the huge bid.
The Stamford Bridge outfit has conceded just 13 goals in 19 games but Antonio Conte is desperate to bolster his backline. Cesar Azpilicueta, Gary Cahill and David Luiz have done a phenomenal job at the back but with the season ending its business end, the former Juventus manager will be keen to have some quality back-up. Veteran defender John Terry is unlikely to play a key part in this season and Kurt Zouma is yet to make a first-team appearance since his knee injury last February, leaving Conte short on defensive options.
However, Southampton boss Claude Puel, insisting that the defender is very important to his team, claimed that all the reports linking him with other clubs are mere speculations.
“Virgil is very important for us, of course, and it’s important to stay calm,” Puel said. “The window is always difficult.
“If an opportunity comes then perhaps [we can sign someone] but other things are just speculation. I prefer to focus on my team.”
It will be interesting to see the Saints’ approach in this matter. They have lost several key players in recent times and a huge bid like this is only going to test their resolve to the maximum.
Furthermore, van Dijk has already expressed his desire of playing for a big club and if an offer arrives from the Blues, it is very unlikely that he will let it pass.
Speaking to The Times last month, he had said:“Everyone says that at 25, the best years are still to come but I am enjoying every bit of it now.”
“Every player in the world has ambitions; I have ambitions like everyone else. I want to get the maximum out of myself as a player. I can improve in every aspect and that takes time. That takes games. That takes playing at the highest level and with the national team.”