Italy do have a history of producing elite defenders. So, it is not hard to see why Chelsea might be eyeing Serie A players to strengthen their defence. In fact, it looks like they have the Italian top flight’s best defender on their radar.
Xabi Alonso played with wing-backs at Bayer Leverkusen. Towards the end of last season, we saw Chelsea do the same, even though the Spaniard had not even arrived.
So, it is possible that they could deploy the system moving forward. The issue is that Marc Cucurella has left for Real Madrid. And most fans believe Reece James might struggle with the physical nature of the role owing to his injury history, even though there is no doubt he has the quality to thrive.
As a result, it should come as a surprise that the Blues have a wing-back in their sights. According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Chelsea have been in contact with the entourage of Marco Palestra. At the moment, there are no negotiations, but only a request for information.
Chesea trying to sign Italian football’s best defender of the season
Palestra is on the books at Atalanta. But he spent the previous season on loan at Cagliari. And what he achieved was an anomaly of the highest order.
Palestra was named the best defender in Serie A for his incredible season. Usually, that award goes to centre-backs.
In the previous two years, Alessandro Bastoni had picked it up. Past winners include Bremer, Cristiano Romero, Kalidou Koulibaly and more.
That is not the end of it. Only one team that finished outside of the relegation zone conceded more goals than Cagliari last season. Yet, Palestra was good enough to pick up the best defender award.
Palestra wants to stay in Italy
The report goes on to state that both Palestra and his agent would like to see him stay in Italy. He is currently waiting on a move to Inter Milan.
Of course, it does not take long for players’ moods to change in football, especially when it comes to transfer matters.
Could you have predicted that Cucurella, a La Masia graduate, would end up joining Real Madrid this summer? Exactly.
So, Chelsea should still be considered in the race to sign Palestra. But Inter Milan are most definitely the favourites to get his signature.
Chelsea’s bigger concern should be filling the other flank, to be honest. Cucurella has left and Jorrel Hato might not be quite ready to start.
