Chelsea transfer news: Blues to turn attention to Sasa Kalajdzic if Erling Haaland deal not possible
The giant Stuttgart striker would represent a much more affordable alternative to the £150 million-rated Haaland
Chelsea will target Stuttgart's Sasa Kalajdzic if they are unable to complete a deal for Erling Haaland, according to reports.
Borussia Dortmund hotshot Haaland is said to be top of the Blues' shopping list this summer as they search for a new number nine, but Dortmund are thought to want at least £150 million for the prolific Norwegian - a price tag which might prove a stretch too far even for a club with pockets as deep as Chelsea's
The Daily Star are reporting that Kalajdzic has been identified as an alternative, with the 24-year-old likely to be available at an absolute fraction of Haaland's value.
Kalajdzic will have turned a few heads at the Euros, not least when he stooped at the near post to head in Austria's goal against Italy in the Last 16 at Wembley - some feat for the man who's the tallest player in the Bundesliga, topping out at a lofty 6'6".
It's hard to see Kalajdzic as the long-term solution to Chelsea's woes in front of goal, though; he's simply not close to Haaland's level (then again, few are). If he were to move to Stamford Bridge, it would surely be to complement Thomas Tuchel's existing centre-forward options - and perhaps take some of the strain off Timo Werner, who managed just six Premier League goals in his first season in England after a £47.5 million switch from RB Leipzig.
Kalajdzic struck 16 times in the Bundesliga last season as Stuttgart finished ninth upon their return to the German top flight.
Subscribe to FourFourTwo today and get a free England Euro 96 shirt!
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
NOW READ
TRANSFER WINDOW All the key dates this summer
OLYMPICS 20 men's players to keep an eye on in Tokyo
QUIZ Can you guess 50 correct answers in our big Euros quiz?
FourFourTwo was launched in 1994 on the back of a World Cup that England hadn’t even qualified for. It was an act of madness… but it somehow worked out. Our mission is to offer our intelligent, international audience access to the game’s biggest names, insightful analysis... and a bit of a giggle. We unashamedly love this game and we hope that our coverage reflects that.