Hull set to beat Fulham to £5m Chelsea defender – report

Ashley Colbourn
Tomas Kalas: Has enjoyed his time on Teesside

Hull City are set to beat Fulham to the signing of defender Tomas Kalas and will pay Chelsea £5million, TEAMtalk understands.

The 24-year-old enjoyed a loan spell at Craven Cottage last season, where he made 39 appearances in total, and they thought they had sealed a deal with their King’s Road neighbours.

However, Hull have made their move and the deal has been brokered by Leonid Slutsky, who is a close friend of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who played a huge part in him getting the job at The KCOM Stadium.

Kalas has been on Chelsea’s books since 2010 and has been on loan to a number of other clubs, including Middlesbrough and Vitesse Arnhem.

Slutsky has the pick of Chelsea’s young players; the likes of Bertrand Traore and Tammy Abraham are out of their reach, but almost every other available player is an option for Hull.

Abramovich is happy to send any players to Hull and we also understand that the Chelsea owner has recommended the East Yorkshire club to a number of his Russian contacts as an excellent potential take-over target, given the club is already for sale.