An insight into the demands laid out by Chelsea for transfer-linked defensive pair Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta has, on Saturday, been provided.
Both Alonso and Azpilicueta, of course, have been tipped to secure a return to their home country of Spain this summer.
This comes with La Liga giants Barcelona, amid the club’s ongoing pursuit of full-back reinforcements, understood to have set their sights on deals for both players ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.
The Blaugrana were widely reported to have been hopeful of striking cut-price deals for the two Spanish internationals, ahead of the expiration of their respective contracts in west London next summer.
In fact, some outlets went as far as to suggest that Azpilicueta was in line for a free agent switch to the Catalan capital, only for a one-year extension in his Chelsea contract to be triggered at the last.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – APRIL 28: Marcus Rashford is challenged by Reece James and Cesar Azpilicueta during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Chelsea at Old Trafford on April 28, 2022 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Should Barcelona have genuine hopes of landing one, or both of the Blues stars over the coming weeks, they will therefore have no option but to pay up.
And, as alluded to above, on Saturday, an insight into precisely how much the transfer team at Chelsea would like to recoup from the two sales has been provided.
The info comes courtesy of Spanish outlet Diario Sport, who point towards a €13 million price-tag having been slapped on the heads of Alonso and Azpilicueta alike.
Thomas Tuchel, meanwhile, is thought to have long given the green light to the former’s sale, should a sufficient offer arrive for his signature. In fact, Sport go as far as to suggest that the Chelsea boss has already identified a replacement for Alonso on the transfer market.
It now remains to be seen whether the powers that be at Barcelona are willing to meet the demands of their counterparts at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea demand €13m each for Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso.
— @sport pic.twitter.com/LT1gKKOZOo
— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) June 25, 2022
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