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Chelsea are working to sign a new left-sided central defender and Monaco's Benoit Badiashile is the leading candidate.
Chelsea in search of a new left sided defender
The pursuit of a new recruit for this position has been ongoing since the last transfer window. At that point, Chelsea had personal terms in place with the RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol but were unable to strike a deal on the transfer fee.
The club retains a strong interest in the Croatia international, however, his rising value has forced Chelsea to broaden the search and consider alternative options for January or next summer.
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Badiashile is now Chelsea's leading candidate
Badiashile is an imposing defender. He is listed as 6ft 4inches and is extremely good on the ball, incredibly fast, and has impressed consistently in France. He also has a lot of experience for someone so young, having played 135 times for Monaco already.
Badiashile has emerged as the priority target for the Blues to fill a problem position. According to The Athletic, Chelsea are in negotiations with Monaco about recruiting the France international.
While there is currently no agreement between the two clubs, multiple sources believe he will join in the weeks ahead for around €35 million
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His arrival would help to reinforce a part of the squad that suffered after Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen left on free transfers last summer.
He would join Thiago Silva, Kalidou Koulibaly, Trevoh Chalobah, and Wesley Fofana in competing for the centre-back spots, with Cucurella and Reece James able to play in those positions.
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