Chelsea will "explore the centre-back market" this summer following the revelation that Wesley Fofana is injured yet again and will miss out on the team's preseason tour of the USA, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.
Are Chelsea signing a new centre-back?
It has been a successful transfer window for the Blues so far this summer. Not only have the club shifted a significant number of players they clearly feel aren't good enough to contribute next season, but they have also started to bring in some exciting youngsters like Nicolas Jackson, who could be future starters.
That said, some terrible luck has just hit Mauricio Pochettino's side; defender Fofana will miss preseason as he suffers with yet another serious knee injury.
The club announced the 29-man squad that would be travelling to the US last night, with the omission of the Frenchman. The reason given by the west Londoners is that he is suffering from a knee injury in what is sure to be a crushing blow for Pochettino and the player himself.
This most recent injury will be the third he's had since joining the Blues from Leicester City in summer 2022 in a deal worth £75m.
In the year since joining Chelsea, he has already missed 20 games due to the 126 days he has spent on the sidelines, and with this most recent injury being another problem with his knee there is, unsurprisingly, concern that he could once again be out of action for weeks or months.
This concern has forced the club into action, with them now looking to sign a new centre-back to cover the hole this injury has left in their backline, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.
He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:
"In case the injury will take some weeks or months for Fofana to be back, the idea of Chelsea, is to explore the centre-back market to find maybe a solution in the final days of July or in the first weeks of August. At the moment, still nothing advanced, still nothing concrete."
Who have Chelsea been linked to?
There have been several high-profile players linked with Chelsea this summer, but perhaps none more prominent than Moises Caicedo.
The Ecuadorian has seemingly become the club's number one transfer target over the last month, and with constant dialogue between themselves and Brighton & Hove Albion, they certainly seem favourites to land his signature.
However, the player has reportedly become frustrated with how long negotiations are taking, partly due to Chelsea's reluctance to meet the Seagulls' valuation of £100m.
Juventus' Serbian striker Dusan Vlahovic is another name that has been touted with a move to West London for much of the summer thus far.
According to Italian publication Calciomercato, the Bianconeri have placed a hefty price tag of €90m (£77m) on the head of their leading number nine, a price which has so far deterred any clubs from lodging genuine offers for his services.
At least that is what Corriere dello Sport have reported, and with the Belgian edging closer to a potential move to Turin, it will be interesting to see if the Belgrade-born-star ends up in the Premier League.