Gvardiol
is
young
at
20,
but
he
does
not
lack
experience,
having
already
been
awarded
10
senior
international
caps
for
Croatia,
as
well
as
racking
up
47
club
appearances
in
all
competitions
last
season
for
Leipzig.
He
was
one
of
many
high-profile
defenders
to
be
enquired
about
during
Chelsea’s
search
that
ended
up
landing
Leicester
City’s
Wesley
Fofana
and
Napoli’s
Kalidou
Koulibaly.
But
with
Koulibaly
already
31
and
Thiago
Silva
now
37,
the
club
may
feel
it
is
best
to
figure
out
the
succession
plan
sooner
rather
than
later.
TOP
STORY
–
CHELSEA
PLAN
BIG
MOVE
FOR
GVARDIOL
IN
JANUARY
With
over
£150m
spent
between
Fofana,
Koulibaly
and
Marc
Cucurella,
while
being
tied
with
Manchester
United
for
the
fewest
goals
scored
in
the
Premier
League
by
a
team
in
the
top-half
(eight
from
six
games),
it
is
curious
to
see
the
Stamford
Bridge
side
still
so
desperate
for
defensive
help.
It
remains
to
be
seen
what
kind
of
budget
Potter
will
be
allowed
to
use
in
the
January
window,
given
all
the
recent
signings
had
been
under
Thomas
Tuchel’s
guidance,
and
it
is
also
fair
to
assume
a
potential
Gvardiol
deal
would
not
have
this
season’s
results
in
mind,
given
their
previous
offer
included
loaning
him
back
to
Leipzig.
Ownership’s
willingness
to
open
up
the
cheque
book
in
January
would
have
likely
been
discussed
during
their
recruitment
of
Potter,
and
Bild
remain
convinced
Chelsea’s
interest
with
the
young
Croatian
is
far
from
over.
ROUND-UP
–
According
to
The
Mirror,
Arsenal
and
Newcastle
United
will
compete
for
the
signature
of
26-year-old
Benfica
left-back
Alex
Grimaldo,
who
is
said
to
be
available
for
£8.6m
due
to
being
in
the
last
year
of
his
contract.
–
The
Metro
is
reporting
United
full-back
Diogo
Dalot
turned
down
a
move
to
Milan,
instead
wishing
to
fight
for
his
spot
at
Old
Trafford.
–
According
to
inews,
Newcastle
are
joining
the
race
for
Vasco
da
Gama
teenager
Andrey
Santos,
who
reportedly
has
a
£30m
price
tag
and
is
a
target
of
Paris
Saint-Germain
and
Barcelona.
–
Jordi
Alba
is
unsettled
at
Barcelona
amid
interest
from
Inter,
but
remains
committed
to
the
club
where
he
now
has
to
contend
with
Alejandro
Balde
and
Marcos
Alonso
for
the
starting
role,
according
to
Marca.
