Chelsea are the frontrunners to sign Marc Guehi this summer and have a major advantage in the race for the Crystal Palace captain.
It has long been acknowledged that Guehi will leave Selhurst Park at the end of the season with his contract set to expire in 2026.
The England international has been a top target for several Premier League clubs since his excellent performances at Euro 2024, with Newcastle seeing four bids – the last of which worth £65million – rejected last summer.
Palace are sticking firmly to their £70m price tag and while Tottenham did offer that on January deadline day, it was rejected as the Eagles had no time to sign a replacement.
Chelsea are very keen on signing Guehi, whom they sold to Palace four years ago for just £18m, and according to The Mirror are prepared to offer £50m plus a player.
Get personalised updates on Chelsea every day
Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro’s Football Newsletter.
Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we’ll send you so we can get football news tailored to you.
And the Blues are in luck, as it is reported that Oliver Glasner’s side would be willing to accept such a deal if the player in question was Trevoh Chalobah.
After being exiled by Enzo Maresca last summer, Chalobah joined Palace on loan and quickly became a fan favourite, forming a great defensive partnership with Maxence Lacroix and Guehi.
But after just 14 appearances in red and blue, Chelsea recalled the 25-year-old who has continued his good form at Stamford Bridge, though reports have claimed that the west London club are planning to sell their academy graduate no matter what in the summer.
Chelsea value Chalobah at £30m, so, in theory, the centre-back plus £50m would seem a great deal for Palace.
The Blues would also need to fend off rival bids for Guehi but they are ahead of Liverpool in the transfer race, as their interest has lessened now that Virgil van Dijk is to sign a contract extension.
Losing Guehi will be a big blow for Palace, as demonstrated on Saturday when they lost 5-2 at Manchester City without their captain who was suspended.
Asked if Guehi’s absence played a major role in the defeat, Glasner said: ‘It was more that Chris [Richards] didn’t train for 10 days, Maxence didn’t train the whole week, so everybody was not at his normal top level.
‘It was unusual for us not to put pressure on the ball. It was a clear pattern: we always protected the depths first.
‘Marc played when we conceded five against Arsenal. We can look for many reasons. We took too many wrong decisions.
‘Before the second goal, Maxence steps into the midfield where he doesn’t need to and opens the gap, then they pass in behind [and score]. We didn’t defend on our top level. That’s why we didn’t win.’
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.