Chelsea suffer blow in pursuit for €50m-rated star as European giants enter race

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Things at Chelsea look to be going from bad to worse – performances on the pitch are dull, the Blues have been hit with a transfer ban and now it looks like they’ll miss out on this transfer target to one of their European rivals.

According to The Sun via Spanish outlet Sport, Bayern Munich have joined the race to sign Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic.

Chelsea are one of the sides that are interested in signing the Swiss-born Croatian international, with Barcelona agreeing a deal to sign Ajax sensation Frenkie de Jong, Rakitic is considering his future at the Camp Nou – it’s likely that the star will fall down the pecking order once De Jong arrives.

It may be time for Rakitic to leave the Blaugrana in order to play consistent first-team football.

Ivan Rakitic

The main obstacle Chelsea will now face in their pursuit for Rakitic is that they’ve just been handed a transfer ban by FIFA.

According to The Guardian, the west London club received a two-window ban from Fifa for a ‘serious’ and ‘systematic’ breach of the rules, regarding the signing of overseas players under the age of 18. It’s understood that Chelsea will appeal the decision – this will allow them to sign players in the summer before the suspension kicks in.

According to Sport’s report, Bayern’s interest in the star is a massive blow to Chelsea – it’s understood that the World Cup finalist was keen on a move to Inter Milan but Barcelona aren’t willing to consider any of there proposals given their financial troubles.

Bayern will be keen on landing Rakitic as he has previous Bundesliga experience. The Croatian midfielder spent three-and=a-half-years with Schalke before moving to Sevilla.

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