Chelsea have already seen their plans for the January transfer window take a hit with Inter midfielder Marcelo Brozovic reportedly set to sign a new contract.
The Blues were said to have had a £21m bid accepted for the Croatian international in the last week of the window, but saw him turn the move down, as reported by The Express.
Any plans for them to revisit negotiations are likely now set to be ruled out, with Brozovic understood to be close to putting pen-to-paper on a new deal that will include a minimum release clause of £42m, as per the same source.
“Yes, he’ll sign a new contract,” Brozovic’s agent Miroslav Bicanic said. “Chelsea? The contract would have been better but for Marcelo money is not everything.”
It was a quiet summer for Antonio Conte in general prior to the final week of the transfer window, with Michy Batshuayi and N’Golo Kane the only two arrivals.
The Italian tactician needed more in order to launch a sustained push for the Premier League and other trophies this season, and he will be confident that he secured it with the signings of Marcos Alonso and David Luiz to strengthen his defence.
He may well have needed more in midfield though, hence the link to Brozovic, but it appears as though he’s now missed the boat for the 23-year-old, as it’s highly unlikely that the Premier League giants will fork out £42m to sign him.
The former Dinamo Zagreb man has impressed in parts since moving to Italy, but has just five goals and five assists in 48 Serie A outings.