Chelsea had plenty of ambition to replenish their central defensive ranks during Todd Boehly's first summer in charge of the Blues' transfer window. Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen departed while Kalidou Koulibaly and Wesley Fofana were signed for significant fees.
They were not the only targets in the US owner's plans however. The Blues had held discussions with RB Leipzig and put forward tentative proposals before Josko Gvardiol eventually signed a contract extension with the Bundesliga side through until 2027. It would have taken another package in excess of £70million to land the 20-year-old defender, and that figure will not have reduced.
National teammate Mateo Kovacic revealed he had been asked Gvardiol's qualities and provided a good review, and with Thiago Silva's future uncertain, the Blues could yet find themselves in the market for another defender as Chelsea's new ownership look to continue on their path of meshing the brightest prospects around Europe with the club's own academy stars.
READ MORE: Chelsea already have ideal Thiago Silva successor to avoid £165.8m summer transfer repeat
Whether January provides that opportunity remains to be seen, though it seems the door could be open on the player's side despite being content at his current club.
Speaking to Index.hr earlier this year, he said: “I’m happy at Leipzig, I still have a lot to learn and need to work on myself. I have people who deal with it, I didn’t think about a transfer. We’ll see what happens in the winter."
With that said, football.london took a close look at Gvardiol as he made his World Cup debut when Croatia took on Morocco and became the second player under 21 to start a World Cup match for Croatia, following in the footsteps of Chelsea's Kovacic.
0-15 minutes
It did not take Gvardiol long to get involved in Croatia's play as he quickly became a regular option as the European side looked to build their play and showed some calm passing across the backline before distributing a pinpoint long ball to Ivan Perisic, despite the Spurs star being closely guarded.
The young defender was also able to show his defensive qualities as he slid in to take the ball off of Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech after 11 minutes before later cutting out the Moroccan's flick to Youssef En-Nesyri.
15-30
Regularly was unafraid to drop to be the deepest defender to ensure he was an option before simply passing the ball on as Morocco's press stopped a number of his teammates moving the ball on well.
30-45
Gvardiol showed his defensive capabilities covering for Borna Sosa, as Ziyech and Achraf Hakimi appear to target the right side. The Croatian central defender is aware and able to clean up after Chelsea's winger spins Sosa on this occasion however.
Again in the final minute of the half showed he was unafraid to take on a long ball. He collected the ball inside his own box turning back and forth looking for an option before sending it deep into the opposition half to find the head of Andrej Kramarić
45-60
Showed his passing ability again even under pressure from the opposition. Broke through the lines with one pass before bailing a teammate out when he was sold short quickly afterwards.
Gvardiol was almost able to take advantage from a Luka Modric corner but Yassine Bounou was able to stretch and ensure the Leipzig star was robbed of a tap-in.
60-75
Repeatedly handed the ball in the 70th minute as Morocco's press closed in, eventually saw his pass cut out by the opposition but only for a corner. Continued to take responsibility and provide an option for his teammates however and remained undaunted.
75-90
Jumped highest to meet a Modric corner with ten minutes remaining but could not direct the ball on goal and was penalised for climbing over the opposition defender. Continued to be a key option for Croatia and even carried the ball forwards a little as the game played out to a draw.
Verdict
While it may not have been the stiffest test of Gvardiol's career, his performance belied his young age. His position and maturity was evident from the off as Morocco looked to exploit Sosa on the left hand side through Ziyech and Hakimi.
Gvardiol had more touches and completed more passes than anyone else on the pitch, and with plenty of accuracy, six of his seven long passes were completed. The Croatian was rarely pushed into a tackle but he recorded a team-high of three interceptions too.
It is easy to see why there is interest in the defender, and with talk of the likes of Manchester City being interested, Chelsea will have their work cut out as well as some tough decisions to make with the likes of Levi Colwill coming through their ranks.
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