Chelsea will have to pay a world record price for a defender if they’re to sign Leicester City ace Ben Chilwell this summer. Frank Lampard is keen to continue his overhaul at Stamford Bridge by signing the England international, who the Blues have tracked for the last two years.
Leicester finished just a point behind Chelsea this term but the Foxes are resigned to losing Chilwell and are already making contingency plans for his exit.
However, the Midlands club are under no pressure to sell and they’ve grown accustomed to cashing in on one player each summer, selling the likes of Harry Maguire, Riyad Mahrez, N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater in recent years.
Leicester demanded £80m for Maguire from Manchester United last summer and despite over two months of negotiations, the Foxes received their asking price as United eventually caved in the final week of the window.
United’s deal for Maguire eclipsed the £75m that Liverpool paid for Virgil van Dijk, making the England centre-back the most expensive defender of all-time. However, according to the Mirror, Leicester want more than the £80m they received for Maguire as the Foxes are in a stronger position this time around.
It means Chelsea will have to pay a world record fee to land the left-back and the Blues will have to give the deal serious consideration, given they’re already pursuing a £80m deal for Kai Havertz. The Blues have spent £90m already this summer on Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech.