Real Madrid look set to overtake Chelsea in the race for one of their biggest transfer targets in 2023. Todd Boehly promises to be one of the busiest owners in football this winter in order to strengthen Graham Potter's options but some of their options are popular picks in the market.
Their midfield targets, including Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham, are largely admired across Europe and may well end up the centre of a bidding war. Given how many different areas Chelsea are looking to invest in across the next two windows they have to be smart with when to engage and when to back out.
There are few richer teams than Los Blancos and even fewer with the financial and footballing pull that the current Champions League winners have, making it even tougher for Chelsea to convince prospective players to move to Stamford Bridge. Things may have been taken out of their hands for one January target though.
READ MORE: Pep Guardiola stunned by Chelsea star as Todd Boehly handed new £26.5m transfer conundrum
After announcing the signing of 21-year-old Benoit Badiashile for around £35m, Chelsea have already completed three deals inside the first week of the window. The defender comes in from Monaco with the aim of bolstering an ageing backline, but he came out of nowhere.
For much of 2022 Chelsea were after RB Leipzig's Josko Gvardiol, thinking they had agreed a day over the summer before seeing him sign a new contract. They then watched on as he dominated at the World Cup and caught the attention of both Real Madrid and Manchester City.
Now, according to Alfredo Pedulla, Madrid have made the first offer for the 20-year-old. With two meetings in the past two weeks, they have blown Chelsea's initial €80m (£70m) offer out of the water with a massive €120 (£105m) bid split over two instalments.
With Chelsea already investing in their backline, and reports that Gvardiol would prefer to take less money to join Madrid as opposed to moving to the highest bidder, they may now be forced to watch on as the Croatian moves out of their grasp.
Badiashile is similar in many ways to Gvardiol as a young defender with brilliant physical attributes and being left-footed, but Gvardiol's incredible performance in Qatar elevated him to international prominence. It doesn't mean Chelsea haven't done some good business here, but going with the less proven player isn't a choice they usually side with, and it's left the door wide open for Madrid to take advantage of.
READ NEXT:
Lewis Hall, Omari Hutchinson and the three other Chelsea stars who deserve to start vs Man City
Pep Guardiola stunned by Chelsea star as Todd Boehly handed new £26.5m transfer conundrum
Why Todd Boehly is eyeing £88m Mykhaylo Mudryk January transfer as Chelsea hijack Arsenal deal
Graham Potter faces unwanted Benoit Badiashile decision for Man City vs Chelsea after £34m deal
Chelsea complete Andrey Santos deal as Todd Boehly continues transfer plan
