Chelsea have stepped up efforts to sign Inter Milan full-back Achraf Hakimi.
Reports from Sky Sports suggest Blues are ramping up efforts to sign the Moroccan defender after registering their interests in his services earlier this month.
But Chelsea are not the only team raring to sign the 22-year-old. The Blues are caught in a fierce bidding war with French Ligue one heavyweights Paris Saint-Germain.
PSG are thought to want Hakimi as well and have tabled a £51 million bid for his signature. Although Chelsea have been able to match their offer, it is understood that Inter want to sell Hakimi for at least £65 million.
However, Inter are willing to sell if they're offered players as part of the deal. This puts Chelsea in the front foot as they're willing to offer Marcos Alonso and David Zappacosta to sweeten their improved offer. It is also understood Emerson Palmieri and Andreas Christensen have been slotted in as options as well, but Sky Sports say Inter are particularly interested in Alonso and Zappacosta.
Alonso has seen his game time in the Blues backline cut back following the arrival of Ben Chilwell from Leicester City last summer. Nonetheless, he's been on Atletico Madrid's radar, who have also registered their interest in his services. Meanwhile, Zappacosta recently spent the past season on loan at Genoa.
Inter's finances were badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic last year. As a result, they want to offload some big names and Hakimi is one of them. Hakimi joined from Real Madrid for around £34 million last summer. He was part of former boss Antonio Conte side that won the Serie A. The 22-year-old has made 45 appearances for Inter in all competitions, including 37 in the Serie A.
Hakimi checks all the boxes as a top defender and can play on either flank in a typical four-man defence. If Chelsea succeed in their pursuit for his services, he would fit straight into boss Thomas Tuchel's five-man defensive system as a wing-back.
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