Chelsea join race for Gladbach midfielder Manu Kone
Chelsea have registered an interest in Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Manu Kone, 90min understands.
The Blues are looking to bolster in midfield this summer and have added plenty of names to their shortlist, at the top of which is West Ham United's Declan Rice.
There are plenty of suitors for Rice, however, and so Chelsea are exploring all their options. 90min reported in January that Southampton's Romeo Lavia was once again of interest to the London side, who failed with a bid to sign the Belgian last summer.
Now, sources have confirmed that Gladbach starlet Kone has played his way onto Chelsea's radar.
The 21-year-old defensive midfielder has been sensational for Gladbach and has attracted significant interest from across Europe, with Napoli and Paris Saint-Germain both known admirers of Kone.
In the Premier League, Liverpool and Newcastle have both scouted Kone this year ahead of a summer departure from Gladbach which is becoming increasingly likely.
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Chelsea are now firmly in the fight for Kone who, at 21, fits the profile for the Blues' new owners as a young star with plenty of top-flight potential.
Kone was recently asked about the interest in him, admitting to Le Parisien that he is honoured to see so many big clubs watching him.
“I live well with rumours, I don’t pay attention to everything that is said. It’s more my entourage and my friends who send me the articles," he explained. “It’s a source of pride for them to see my name associated with big clubs, but it doesn’t make me hot or cold. I prefer to finish my season quietly. Afterward, what must happen will happen.”
Asked specifically about the interest of PSG and a possible return to the city of his birth, Paris, Kone insisted the only deciding factor for him when it comes to a transfer would be the game time on offer.
“It’s true that I’m Parisian," he acknowledged. “I was born and trained here. There is a logical link.
"But whether it’s Paris or another club, I don’t care. I just want to play football. In Monchengladbach, I play. So if I have to leave, I’ll think about playing first.”