Barcelona are reportedly lining up a £20m move for shock target Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen, who is currently on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach.
The Sun have claimed that Barcelona are eyeing a deal for Chelsea youngster Andreas Christensen. The Dane, who is currently on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach, has reportedly caught the attention of Barcelona hierarchy with his solid performances in the Bundesliga and the Blaugranes are now contemplating a move for the former Brondby ace.
Andreas Christensen joined the ranks at Chelsea at the age of 16 and has been highly regarded by the coaches at Chelsea and overall, in Europe. The young central defender agreed to move on a two-season long loan to Bundesliga club Borussia Monchengladbach in the hope of gaining some much-needed first-team playing time.
The player is now in his second season of the two-season temporary deal and has firmly established himself at the back at Gladbach, The 20-year-old was one of the regulars on the team sheet last season starting 31 of the 34 Bundesliga matches and was arguably, one of the best defenders in the league.
Christensen has played each and every minute of Gladbach’s campaign in both Bundesliga and the Champions League thus far this season and has impressed the Gladbach hierarchy so much they have made public of their wish to secure a permanent deal for the Dane.
Gladbach were even linked with a £15m bid for the 20-year-old but the club’s offer was immediately shot down by Chelsea. Barcelona have now emerged as a potential suitor for the Chelsea defender, who has been likened to Gerard Pique for similarities based on movement, playing style and stature.
Gerard Pique has said, earlier, that he would be open to moving to the MLS in the future and the Blaugranes may be looking to secure a deal for the 20-year-old as Pique’s replacement with a £20m bid lined up by the club in the next transfer window or preferably at the end of the season, as the loan deal expires.
Although, Christensen would be happy with the interest being shown by Barcelona, the player has already made it clear that he wants first-team guarantees at Chelsea if he is to return to the club and the same could be the case for the Catalan giants.
Barcelona are unlikely to be able to offer a guaranteed role of a starter at this point of time with the likes of Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano on their books with new signing Samuel Umtiti also available at Luis Enrique’s disposal.
One is not even sure if Barcelona would be able to have a bid accepted for Christensen as Chelsea have not been too apprehensive to the idea of parting with Christensen on a permanent basis with fans and Chelsea hierarchy seeing the player as a worthy replacement for captain John Terry, who looks to be at the twilight of his career.
For now, though, Christensen is set to stay at Gladbach till the end of this season and the Dane would be looking to further establish himself as one of the leading centre-backs in Europe among the players around his age group.
