Chelsea consider Atletico’s Gimenez

Chelsea have been scouting Atletico Madrid’s Jose Gimenez with manager Frank Lampard keen to find solutions for his team’s defensive problems, according to The Telegraph.

The issues in Chelsea’s back line become very clear with a look at the Premier League table. The team sits in fourth place, but you’d have to go down to Southampton in 12th to find a team who’ve conceded more goals in the league (59) this season than the Blues (54). That puts them in a disadvantaged position compared to the other top-four competitors when it comes to goal-difference, which could prove fatal for their Champions League hopes.

Meanwhile, Manchester City have reportedly made contact with Atletico over Gimenez already and were told they would have to pay his entire release clause (€120 million) or there would be no deal. If so, there is no reason to assume Chelsea would get a different answer, and having already signed striker Timo Werner from RB Leipzig and winger Hakim Ziyech from Ajax, and reportedly being in talks over Bayer Leverkusen star Kai Havertz, it’s questionable, to say the least, if they’d be able to afford Gimenez at that price as well.