Chelsea are leading the race for Southampton centre-back Virgil van Dijk, with a summer move on the cards, reports the Sun.
The Dutchman, who is currently sidelined through injury, has been a revelation for the south coast side following his arrival from Celtic in 2015, with his performances not going unnoticed.
Van Dijk was heavily linked with a move away from St. Mary’s last summer and again in January, though any chance of a winter departure was put on hold after he sustained a foot injury at the turn of the year.
Despite a lack of game time in 2017, the 25-year-old is still valued at £50m by Saints and they can command a top fee after he put pen to paper on a six-year deal last May.
Chelsea are keen to strengthen at the back this summer, with manager Antonio Conte identifying Van Dijk as a possible target.
Arsenal are also prepared to spend big to sign the Netherlands international, but it’s though Van Dijk favours a move to Stamford Bridge.
What’s more is the Blues are prepared to sweeten the deal by letting Andreas Christensen move to Saints as part of the deal, if only on loan.
John Terry’s impending departure and Kurt Zouma’s poor form following his return from injury has convinced Conte that he needs to bring in another centre-back, with Chelsea fronting the queue to sign Van Dijk.
For more stats on Virgil van Dijk, click here to view his WhoScored player page
This guy is a great defender, according to statistics.