Exclusive: Chelsea identify ideal Thiago Silva successor; must pay £69m to beat Arsenal in transfer race
Chelsea linked Sporting Lisbon defender Ousmane Diomande
Chelsea are preparing for life without Thiago Silva and the club are shortlisting some of the best young defensive talent in order to build for the future.
The 39-year-old centre-back is out of contract at the end of the season and TEAMtalk sources suggest that he will finish his career in Brazil.
Chelsea scouts have been across Europe over recent months and have compiled a shortlist for manager Mauricio Pochettino. One of the standout names is Sporting Lisbon’s Ousmane Diomande.
The 19-year-old is understood to have impressed scouts who watched him play for Cote d’Ivoire in their recent 1-1 draw against Morocco. It was only his second international appearance, but he has also been impressive for his club side this season, starting every game so far.
Sporting signed him in January from FC Midtjylland in a deal worth £7m and would be unlikely to do a deal just one year on from his deadline day arrival last winter.
However, Diomande has a release clause of £69m and Chelsea could be tempted to activate it as they are not alone in their pursuit of the centre-back.
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Chelsea must spend big to sign Diomande
The desire from Pochettino to sign a top striker could prevent the London club from spending big on a defensive option in the winter window, but Diomande is a very realistic target for summer 2024.
Sources state that Chelsea may have to act fast because there will be plenty of suitors for his signature next summer; Arsenal and Bayern Munich are both keen and have spoken with his agents at Prosport Global.
Sporting have Diomande signed to a contract until 2027 and would demand the whole release clause to sell him midway through a campaign which sees them sitting top of the Liga Portugal table, one point ahead of Benfica.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have proven themselves to be a club who can pull off blockbuster January deals with Enzo Fernandez and Mykhailo Mudryk serving as two recent examples.
The trajectory for Diomande is looking extremely positive and he is now top of the list as a replacement for the legendary Silva.
It’s now likely the Brazilian will be waving goodbye to Stamford Bridge after spending four years at the club, and looks set to return to Fluminense.
