Chelsea have reportedly set a £25 million price tag on French defender Kurt Zouma amid interest from fellow Premier League club West Ham United as per the report in 90min.
The 26-year-old joined the west London club back in 2014 from Ligue1 side Saint-Etienne for around £13 million. The defender was loaned out several occasions following his transfer to the Premier League. However, he regained his place in the Blues’ first eleven for a brief spell under Frank Lampard.
However, since the beginning of the Thomas Tuchel era at Stamford Bridge, the defender has found himself on the bench. The Blues are looking to offload the Frenchman in this summer transfer window and are trying to include him in the Jules Kounde deal. The European Champions are in for the Sevilla man and open to selling Zouma this summer.
Can West Ham sign Zouma from Chelsea?
According to the report in 90min, Chelsea are not willing to accept anything less than £25 million for their star man. The Frenchman was the player to make way for the new signing Kounde but his reluctance to relocate his future away from London has stalled the deal.
West Ham United have shown interest in the Chelsea man Zouma to create a strong enough squad to compete for Premier League as well as the Europa League in the upcoming season. However, the Hammers are put off by the Blues’ huge price tag. They are now considering alternative options like Fiorentina defender Nikola Milinkovic.
Thomas Tuchel is looking for a defender who can be comfortable with the ball as well as can defend. The 26-year-old is excellent in defending, however, lacks composure with the ball which has reduced his game time under the German manager.
Kounde will fit in the Blues’ back three perfectly. He is excellent on the ball and also can pass between the lines. The defender also makes forward runs from the defence in open play. The 22-year-old’s these attributes will be perfect for a back three system and will provide an excellent balance between attack and defence.
So, it will be interesting to see what will be the next transfer business from the European Champions. Having already addressed the striker problem with Romelu Lukaku, they can now focus on bringing in new faces in the other areas. Therefore, Zouma departure could help Chelsea to bolster other positions.
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