According to TMW, Chelsea is willing to make a five-year, €13 million (£213,000) a year offer to Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt to try to secure his business.

The Italian website claim that the Blues are willing to pay a “higher salary” than rivals Bayern Munich, who are also looking to snap up the centre-back.

At the moment, though, neither team have agreed a fee with Juve for de Ligt. Bayern are reportedly prepared to pay between €70m (£59.6m) and €75m (£63.8m) for the player while Chelsea could be willing to go above the €80m (£68m) mark.

There have been reports that de Ligt would prefer a move to Germany, although it seems clear that Chelsea are willing to do more than Bayern in terms of the finances.

Other teams, including Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool have been mentioned as potential suitors for de Ligt but it seems clear that Thomas Tuchel’s side are gearing for a straight fight with Bayern for the 22-year-old’s services.