4 talented centre-backs Chelsea could sign in the summer

1. Kalidou Koulibaly

The Senegalese international is the closest player available who could emulate what Van Dijk has done for Liverpool.

Koulibaly is incredibly strong, an excellent tackler, and doesn’t lack pace either. He is also a very commanding centre-back and could provide an aerial threat going forward as well as help solve Chelsea’s set-piece issue, which has plagued them all season.

While he is 29, centre-backs stay at the top of their game well into their 30s, as shown by Giorgio Chiellini, Sergio Ramos, and Gerard Pique, so he still has at least four years at his best to offer Chelsea.

He would not come cheap, though, with Napoli demanding a fee of nearly €100m, and club president Aurelio De Laurentiis has a history of milking top clubs for as much money as he can (just look at Gonzalo Higuain’s transfer to Juventus).

But Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has already shown a willingness to spend this summer, and the club have bid a similar amount for Havertz, so they can afford him.

If that’s what it takes to eliminate their defensive inconsistencies, then his price tag is completely justified.

Manchester City are also in the running for his signature, but if their Champions League ban is upheld it is unlikely Koulibaly would choose to go to a team that cannot play in Europe’s top competition.

If Chelsea do manage to sign him, he’d be a massive coup for them, and the move would instantly make Lampard’s side title contenders.