Chelsea eyeing up big-name for Rudiger replacement – May ‘try to make attack’ under release clause

Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt is on Chelsea’s radar this summer as they look to replace Antonio Rudiger.

That’s according to Tuttosport, who say the defender is ‘on the move’ as Chelsea are ‘thinking’ of trying to sign the Dutchman.

The newspaper explains that they were already thinking of De Ligt as a potential reinforcement, with Thomas Tuchel keen to improve his defence this summer.

That interest has now been reinforced courtesy of Rudiger’s imminent departure, with reports making it clear that he’s on the verge of joining Real Madrid.

The big stumbling block for Chelsea is that De Ligt has a €120m release clause in his contract that is set to come into effect in June.

That means Juventus can demand that figure be matched and, if not, keep hold of the defender, sitting comfortably knowing his contract doesn’t expire until June 2024 anyway.

Tuttosport do say it cannot be ruled out that Chelsea will ‘try to make an attack’ on De Ligt for a lower price and negotiate with Juventus from that point, but whether the Italians would be interested in doing so is another matter.

It’s hard to imagine they would be given they’re not desperate to sell a key player, and his contract still has two years left on it, so they’re secure on that front as well.

Money also rules the roost, though, and perhaps Chelsea will come in with a deal under €120m that can tempt Juve to sanction a deal. First, they need new owners.