Chelsea have already got a seal of approval from Pep Guardiola over transfer target Matheus Nunes.
The Sporting Lisbon star has quickly zoomed up the shortlist at Stamford Bridge as they look to bolster their ranks this summer under new owner Todd Boehly. The American billionaire has promised Thomas Tuchel up to six signings with links to Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, but there has yet to be one arrival.
While defence and attack are areas that that need immediate surgery, the midfield has not been forgotten where N'Golo Kante and Jorginho are entering the final year of their contracts. Chelsea have missed out on Aurelien Tchouameni, who joined Real Madrid, while West Ham have demanded as much as £150million for Declan Rice.
It has led to the Blues casting the net further and Nunes has been eyed as a potential solution to their midfield issues. According to A Bola, an offer is being readied worth £43m for a player that had been heavily linked with Wolves as a replacement for Ruben Neves.
However, the 23-year-old has refused to enter talks as he held out for a better option - which appears to have come in the shape of Chelsea. Tuchel might be emboldened by the fact that the player also comes with a ringing endorsement from Manchester City boss Guardiola.
The Catalan coach got a close-up look of the Portugal international when City took on Sporting in the Champions League last season. While it did not end well for the Primeira Liga outfit after being thrashed 5-0, one star stood out.
He said: "Sporting are a fantastic team, they are the champions of Portugal, which have a very strong league, with Porto and Benfica, they change the ball well, they have fast and intelligent players. I would say that Matheus Nunes is one of the best players in the world today."
Tuchel is not keen on bringing in superstar players despite the links to Ronaldo and Neymar and wants to sign those that fit his system. However, it has been a slow process so far and they are the only top-six side not to have made a transfer yet.
Manchester United's acquisition of Tyrell Malacia has left Chelsea in the dust while their other rivals have strengthened massively with signings such as Erling Haaland at City, Darwin Nunez at Liverpool, Gabriel Jesus at Arsenal and Yves Bissouma at Tottenham. The likes of Raheem Sterling, Matthijs de Ligt and Raphinha have been strongly linked with the Blues.
