Chelsea focussing on Van Dijk after Bonucci snub

Leonardo Bonucci was Chelsea’s number one centre-back target this summer but Antonio Conte may have suffered a fatal blow in his pursuit of the Italian.

Massimiliano Allegri has confirmed that his leading defender will not be leaving Juventus this summer as they view him as the future captain at the club.

“He’s an important player, an extraordinary player and above all he has to understand that he’ll be the future leader of the Juventus dressing room.”
With that in mind, Chelsea have turned their attentions to pursuing a deal for Southampton captain Virgil van Dijk, according to the London Evening Standard.

Liverpool were the leading candidates to sign the £70m-rated defender this summer but have backed away from a deal after being threatened by Southampton for tapping up the player without having a bid accepted.

Chelsea will be going in for the Dutchman this summer as part of a major squad overhaul with Tiemoue Bakayoko and Alex Sandro expected to arrive in the near future for a combined fee of nearly £100m.

Van Dijk is still a target for Liverpool but due to the strained relationship between the clubs, Southampton don’t want to sell to the Reds, putting Chelsea in the driving seat to land the former Celtic defender.