Transfer News: Chelsea set to open talks with David Alaba

Pini Zahavi, the agent of soon-to-be out of contract Bayern Munich star David Alaba is set to hold talks with Chelsea over a possible transfer for the defender.

According to Sport BILD’s Christian Falk on Twitter, Chelsea may have stolen a march over Real Madrid and others in the race to sign Bayern Munich defender David Alaba. It is being claimed that the Blues are set to hold talks with the Austrian’s agent, Pini Zahavi, in January over the possibility of a summer transfer.

Alaba has been with the Bavarian giants since 2010 and has been a pivotal member of the side that has seen a lot of the success over the last decade. Primarily a left-back, the 28-year-old has transformed himself into a centre-back in recent seasons and has excelled in his secondary position.

However, Alaba’s time at the Allianz Arena could be drawing to close in the near future. The 28-year-old is currently in the final year of his contract with the Bundesliga champions and talks over a new deal have broken down after the defender turned down their latest contract offer worth an annual salary of around €11 million.

There has been plenty of interest in the Austrian international’s situation, with the likes of Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain keeping a close eye on the developments. Chelsea, too, had shown an interest in securing the services of the 28-year-old Bayern Munich star back in the summer and may have now received a boost in their pursuit.

With Alaba’s contract expiring at the end of the season, the 28-year-old will be eligible to negotiate with clubs from abroad from January over a pre-contract agreement for a free transfer in the summer. And, according to Falk, his agent, Zahavi, is setting up talks with Chelsea, with a transfer to Stamford Bridge very much on the cards.

Chelsea strengthened their defence with the signings of Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva and Malang Sarr this past summer. However, with neither Emerson Palmieri nor Marcos Alonso high on manager Frank Lampard’s priority list, they could be in need of a new left-back come next summer.

Furthermore, Silva was signed on a year-long deal. And while discussions over an extension are taking place, the Brazilian will be 37 when the next season rolls in. So, there will also be the requirement of phasing him out and replacing him with a quality operator, thus, making Alaba a viable target for Chelsea.

However, Chelsea are not the only club with whom Zahavi is planning to hold talks with. PSG, too, remain in the picture, while the pull of Real Madrid can always be hard to turn down for any player. It will be interesting to see where Alaba’s career takes him next but as things stand, this could very well be his last season with Die Roten.