Chelsea are reportedly willing to pay £85m to sign Wesley Fofana from Leicester – a fee which would make the centre-back the most expensive defender of all time.
Todd Boehly's consortium completed their takeover at Stamford Bridge in May, and the Blues have already spent big under their new owners.
Among the several new faces to arrive in West London this summer is Kalidou Koulibaly, who joined from Napoli in a deal worth around £33m.
The Senegal star looks like a quality pick-up for the Blues, but Thomas Tuchel has strongly hinted that he wants to strengthen further at the back – and Fofana appears to be the top target in that department.
Speaking to the media ahead of his side's Premier League season opener against Everton, Tuchel said:
"Marc [Cucurella] [who signed from Brighton on Friday] can play in a back three on the left, Kalidou [Koulibaly] can play on the left of a three. Thiago Silva, who is not Benjamin Button, [is] not getting younger, unfortunately, even though sometimes it seems like it.
"Maybe we bring in one more player, maybe not. Still, we have Malang Sarr with us and Ethan Ampadu still with us. We have option, but at the same time, we know how many games are coming. So let's see if we can sign a player."
According to the Guardian's Jacob Steinberg, Chelsea are prepared to smash the world transfer record for a defender in order to land Fofana.
That record currently belongs to former Leicester man Harry Maguire, who moved to Man United for £80m three years ago.
Fofana joined the Foxes from Saint-Etienne in October 2020 for a fee worth up to £36.5m.
The France U21 international had made 50 appearances in all competitions for Brendan Rodgers team and started their 2021 FA Cup final victory over Chelsea.
