Chelsea have reportedly opened talks to sign one defender, but there is a huge problem threatening any potential deal this summer.
After a disastrous season, Chelsea are likely to enter the transfer market.
Defence is one area that may have to be addressed because of departures and injuries.
Thiago Silva is leaving Stamford Bridge at the end of the campaign. It has been claimed that he already has proposals from three different London clubs.
Ben Chilwell has struggled to stay fit this term, so as well as signing a new central defender to replace Silva, the Blues may also need to recruit another left-back.
Chelsea have opened talks to sign new left-back
On top of Chilwell, Mauricio Pochettino also has Marc Cucurella and Levi Colwill who can play at left-back.
Colwill is a centre-back but has spent most of the season playing on the left side of Chelsea’s defence.
It looks like Chelsea do want to strengthen that area of the pitch, though, with Dutch outlet 1908 claiming that the Blues have opened talks with Feyenoord’s Quilindschy Hartman.
However, their report also states that a transfer to Chelsea is currently out of the question because of the serious knee injury the 22-year-old picked up in March, which could rule him out of action until 2025.
The same outlet has claimed that Hartman was at the Emirates last week to watch Pochettino’s men lose 5-0 to Arsenal.
How was Quilindschy Hartman performing before his injury?
Hartman was having a pretty good season in the Eredivisie.
According to WhoScored, the left-back was making 1.7 interceptions per league game, which was the third-highest average in Arne Slot’s squad.
Hartman also provided five assists and averaged 1.4 key passes per match — very respectable numbers for a full-back.
Based on the above, Hartman could have been a good addition to Chelsea’s squad this summer. But a deal seems far away, despite reported talks with the player, because of his injury.