Abramovich clears £70m West Ham swap to round off Chelsea splurge
Chelsea are to round off their spending with a player-plus-cash swap deal for Declan Rice amounting to £70million, according to a report.
Having been unable to spend last summer due to a transfer ban, the Blues have already spent big this summer. The club have confirmed the signings of Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner for a combined £73.5million.
In the past week, Chelsea have also stepped up their pursuit of two other top targets. The west London side have agreed a deal in principle with Kai Havertz and look likely to sign Ben Chilwell.
According to Football Insider, however, Frank Lampard’s side will not have finished once those deals go through.
The source claims Chelsea will wait until the end of the transfer window – towards October – before tabling a “massive” offer for West Ham lynchpin Rice.
Indeed, the deal will amount to £70million and include a Chelsea player – but it is unclear who that will be.
The Blues are reportedly willing to offload several players before next season. Among them will likely be Tiemoue Bakayoko, who has arrived back at Stamford Bridge after his loan at Monaco.
Werner’s arrival also means Michy Batshuayi‘s future looks in doubt. Olivier Giroud and Tammy Abraham are also ahead of the Belgian in Lampard’s pecking order.
Football Insider adds that West Ham and Rice himself have given Chelsea encouragement over a deal.
As such, they are willing to “bide their time” before submitting the offer, which will allow them to raise funds through player sales.
Indeed, the source says there are more than 10 players who could go before the October 5 transfer deadline.
CHELSEA CLOSE TO SIGNING SERIAL WINNER
Meanwhile, Chelsea are close to signing Brazil defender Thiago Silva, according to reports.
The 35-year-old is a free agent after leaving Paris Saint-Germain following Sunday’s Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.
And with Lampard keen to rejuvenate his defence, Silva will provide vital experience to a leaky back line.
