Chelsea’s pursuit of Juventus and Netherlands stare Matthijs de Ligt looks to have taken a step forward.

The Blues have been heavily linked with De Ligt during the last few weeks. This also comes with previous centre-back target Jules Kounde seemingly more likely to join FC Barcelona over Chelsea.

And now, as per reports coming from Italy, the west Londoners are ready to make their first official offer for the stopper.

Said offer is worth €70m and does not include any players despite previous reports suggesting the likes of Christian Pulisic and Timo Werner could be used as part of a deal for De Ligt.

It is added that Juventus are willing to accept a figure under De Ligt’s €120m release clause. However, it is not known if they would be willing to knock a full €50m off his price.

Outside of De Ligt, Chelsea are also eyeing Nathan Ake, who is believed to be keen on a return to Stamford Bridge.

De Ligt’s Juventus stint

After several impressive seasons at Ajax, which saw him captain the side, win the Eredivisie and reach the Champions League semi-finals, De Ligt was snapped up by Juventus in the summer of 2019.

The Italian powerhouse are believed to have paid big money, around £76m, to bring the centre-back to Turin.

Since his move to Italy, however, De Ligt has not had the best of times, as Juve failed to defend their Serie A in 2020/21 before once again missing out on the title last season.

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