La Liga champions Barcelona are reportedly eyeing a loan move for Denmark international Andreas Christensen in the January window.
As per a report from Spanish outlet Sport, Barcelona are keen on signing Chelsea starlet Andreas Christensen on loan in the January transfer window and to that end, have already made a formal offer to the English heavyweights.
Barcelona find themselves in a bit of a worrisome situation in defence, with stalwart Samuel Umtiti facing a lengthy spell out on the sidelines owing to a troublesome knee problem. The French World Cup winner may have to undergo a surgery which might lead to him missing a good chunk of the second half of the campaign.
Even if there is no necessity for Umtiti to go under the knife, Barcelona are concerned over the possibility of the injury recurring towards the business end of the season. The Catalans do have Gerard Pique, Clement Lenglet and Thomas Vermaelen at their disposal, but given the latter’s injury-ridden past, they are intent on strengthening their options in January.
Ernesto Valverde’s men were believed to be looking at former Chelsea star Branislav Ivanovic as a probable option in the January transfer window. However, they now seem to have switched their attention towards the 22-year-old Christensen instead.
Having started out at Brondby back in his homeland, Christensen joined the Chelsea youth setup back in 2013 and has since been heralded as one of the finest young talents to have come through the ranks at the club. The 22-year-old made a name for himself during his two-year loan spell with Borussia Monchengladbach between 2015 and 2017.
Having returned from his temporary spell, Christensen became a permanent fixture in the Chelsea first-team under Antonio Conte in the 2017-18 campaign, but that has not been the case this time out. The Danish international has lost his place in the side to Antonio Rudiger and David Luiz and has largely been relegated to cup appearances under new boss Maurizio Sarri.
So far in the 2018-19 season, Christensen has featured just nine times across all competitions. While he is expected to start in the Blues’ Carabao Cup semifinal tie against Bournemouth on Wednesday night, the 22-year-old has grown frustrated at the lack of playing time and is believed to be open to a move away from Stamford Bridge.
Barcelona are looking to bring the Dane on a loan deal for six months, but Chelsea are understood to have rejected such a possibility. However, the Premier League heavyweights might be willing to consider a permanent move for their youth team product, which the Catalans are averse to, as they are not interested in investing heavily in the winter window.
Christensen penned a new contract with Chelsea in January earlier this year, extending his stay at the club till the summer of 2022. Despite his lack of first-team football this term, the 23-time capped Denmark international is regarded as one of the finest young centre-backs across Europe.
It remains to be seen what the next month holds in store for the supremely talented Christensen, as Barcelona wait in the wings to snap him up.
