Chelsea midfield target in London to seal £35m transfer

Tiemoue Bakayoko is in London for a medical and will finalise a move to Chelsea, according to a report in France.

RTL Sport claim the 22-year-old Monaco man arrived in London on Monday night with Chelsea now close to wrapping up a £35million deal for the midfield enforcer.

Antonio Conte has been eager to add some more dynamism to his central midfield and after watching Bakayoko in action last season he identified the one-cao France midfielder as the man to step into his championship-winning side.

Bakayoko made 47 appearances for Monaco last season, scoring three times and claiming one assist as Monaco won Ligue 1 and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.

His arrival at Stamford Bridge will pave the way for Nemanja Matic’s £40million departure. The 28-year-old Serbia man is believed to be close to linking up again with Jose Mourinho at Manchester United.

The Guardian reported yesterday that Matic will take a medical in the “coming days” after agreeing personal terms on a deal which will earn him around £155,000 a week – a significant rise on the £90,000 a week he earns at Chelsea.

Matic though is only believed to be third choice in the holding role for Mourinho with Eric Dier and Radja Naingollan reportedly his top two targets, but both players are believed to be out of reach for United.