Chelsea handed boost in pursuit of young defender as rival looks elsewhere

Chelsea’s pursuit of young RB Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano has been given a huge boast as they could be the only Premier League club in the race for his signature.

Dayot Upamecano’s impressive performance at RB Leipzig has been noticed by top clubs in Europe and he is reportedly ready to leave Germany in the summer.

With the Frenchman having a £37.4 million release clause, top clubs are willing to pay his transfer fee but they have to convince him towards making the move.

The likes.of Arsenal, Liverpool, Bayern Munich have been linked to him as he has become one of the most sought after talents in Europe.

Chelsea have now had an edge over Liverpool in his pursuit as they decided to add two new defenders to their ranks on transfer deadline day.

Liverpool completed the signings of two defenders on January transfer deadline day, which could see them forget about their pursuit for Upamecano come summer.

The reds who have lost Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez to long-term injuries completed the signing of Preston defender Ben Davies for a fee of £1.6million.

Liverpool also agreed a deal with Schalke to sign Ozan Kabak on loan until the end of the season and Dayot Upamecano may no longer be pursued by the reds.

There are reports that the arrival of Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea may help the blues convince Dayot Upamecano into making the move.