Chelsea are reportedly set to rival La Liga champions Barcelona for the signing of Serbian striker Luka Jovic, who is starring in the Bundesliga.
According to a report from the Daily Mirror, Premier League giants Chelsea are set to enter the race for the transfer of 21-year-old striker Luka Jovic, who is also being chased by Barcelona.
The Serbian forward came through the youth ranks at Crvena Zvezda and went on to make 48 first-team appearances, having made his debut at the age of 16. Jovic scored 13 goals and set up four more, before making the switch to Portuguese giants Benfica in February 2016.
Jovic managed just four first-team appearances in Portugal in eighteen months, before he secured a two-year loan spell at Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer of 2017. He had a fairly average debut campaign in Germany with his loan club, scoring 9 goals in 27 matches, but has taken the Bundesliga by storm this time out.
So far in the 2018-19 campaign, Jovic has bagged 14 goals in 19 league matches and is the leading goalscorer in the German top-flight. He has also scored five times in seven appearances in the UEFA Europa League, establishing himself as one of the hottest young properties in Europe.
Jovic’s rise to prominence with Eintracht has managed to grab the attention of La Liga champions Barcelona. With age seemingly catching up with star striker Luis Suarez, who has been injured on a number of occasions this season, the Catalans are on the lookout for an attacking reinforcement in the upcoming summer transfer window.
To that end, Barcelona had been linked with a move for Jovic, with reports earlier this week even claiming that the Blaugrana had already agreed personal terms with the 21-year-old Serb. However, that has not fazed Chelsea, who have also thrown their hat in the ring for the £39 million-rated striker’s signature, reports the Daily Mirror.
The Premier League heavyweights, who are going through a bit of a lean patch of late, signed Argentine international Gonzalo Higuain on loan from Juventus last month, with a view of making the transfer permanent at the end of the season.
However, Chelsea loaned out Alvaro Morata to Atletico Madrid until the end of the 2019-20 season, while Olivier Giroud’s contract runs out in a few months’ time. And with Michy Batshuayi’s future at the club also far from certain, it is only natural that the West London outfit will be looking to boost their forward line ahead of the next season, with Jovic emerging as a potential target.
Eintracht Frankfurt have the option of buying Jovic outright from Benfica at the end of the seaosn, but with the who’s who of Europe taking notice, the Serbian could be on the move in the summer. It remains to be seen, however, if either of Chelsea or Barcelona are able to get their hands on their target in the coming months.
