€30m a “bargain” for rising defender, and Chelsea join Arsenal and Man U in the chase | OneFootball

January is closing in, and while we don’t expect Chelsea to make any huge purchases or sales, they’ll be as active as ever as they continue to try and corner the market on young talents.

Chelsea are keen on rapidly developing Rennes defender

Jeremy Jacquet in action for Rennes in Ligue 1.

The Blues have been linked with a few names in the build up to this next window, and a new one we see mentioned today is Jeremy Jacquet.

The Rennes defender has been linked with us by Mark Brus of CaughtOffside, who says that the defender ahs impressed Man U scouts. Other teams have been linked, including Crystal Palace, Tottenham and RB Leipzig.

“United scouts have given glowing reports,” one source told the transfer expert.

“They’ve noted mature performances, aerial dominance, smart positioning, and calm distribution – all the best traits of a modern centre back.”

Chelsea are well stocked at the back right now, but there’s a sense they could move on from Trevoh Chalobah and Tosin Adarabioyo next summer if they think they can find upgrades. A few names have been mentioned repeatedly, and we may have to add Jacquet to that list.

The €30-40m asking price it would cost to sign him sounds a bargain – and the source agrees.

“In all honesty, that’s a bargain in this market. That figure won’t be a problem for United or Arsenal.”

The cost won’t be an issue – it will be more about sales.

In other news…

The Blues face Arsenal this weekend, and one key battle in midfield will be Moises Caicedo against Declan Rice. According to the latter, it’s not a fair comparison…

Chelsea played on Tuesday this week, giving us a chance to check out other Blues in the competition – like the sensation Dastan Satpaev, who scored for Kairat Almaty.