Chelsea add £70m-rated centre-back to transfer shortlist - report

Chelsea have expressed an in signing Nottingham Forest centre-back Murillo, several reports have revealed.

The Blues are keen to bolster in defence and have already landed Tosin Adarabioyo on a free transfer from Fulham as a replacement for Thiago Silva.

Brazilian outlet UOL were the first to reveal Chelsea's interest in Murillo. The 21-year-old caught the eye in his debut campaign with Forest and is seen as an ideal fit in Chelsea's youth-oriented project.

An asking price of £51m is suggested, although it is stressed that Chelsea will not pay such a figure and are instead exploring a potential swap deal which would see a handful of players move to Forest in exchange.

The Telegraph later backed up the links between Chelsea and Murillo but placed the Brazilian's value at closer to the £70m mark.

Formal contact between the two clubs is not yet believed to have taken place but Chelsea have enquired about his availability through intermediaries as they continue to draw up their summer transfer plans.

It is believed that Forest need to sell players before June 30 in order to avoid punishment from the Premier League over Profit and Sustainability Rules breaches.

Moussa Niakhate and Orel Mangala are both in talks over moves to Lyon which would ease Forest's immediate concerns.

Whether Chelsea will formalise their interest in Murillo remains to be seen, but any deal would almost certainly take a significant period of time to finalise, particularly if Chelsea look to include players in their negotiations.

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