Chelsea make late bid to try and land Bayern defender

Rob McCarthy

Chelsea have reportedly made an offer to Bayern Munich for experienced defender Rafinha.

Blues boss Antonio Conte is still trying to bolster his squad before Thursday’s transfer deadline, with deals for Danny Drinkwater, Ross Barkley, Virgil van Dijk and Fernando Llorente still in the pipeline – although Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has rejected a switch to Stamford Bridge.

Rafinha, 31, has been made available by Bayern having played only 23 minutes in the Bundesliga so far this season.

The Brazilian is Bayern’s second choice right-back behind Joshua Kimmich and is likely being viewed as more of a defensive alternative to Victor Moses in the right wing-back role, according to Bild.

Conte had been hoping to use Oxlade-Chamberlain as competition for Moses but it would now appear that former Schalke star Rafinha could fill that role if a deal goes through.