Chelsea in pole position to sign David Alaba
The Bayern defender will not be signing a new contract there, according to reports
Chelsea are in pole position to sign Bayern Munich defender David Alaba, as per reports in Spain.
We first heard of Chelsea’s interest in the Austrian international from German publication BILD. They reported that his representatives will meet with Chelsea in January to talk about a potential move to England.
Now Spanish outlet AS have gone one further and are suggesting that Frank Lampard’s side are the favourites to sign the 28-year old, and that he will not be signing a new contract extension with Bayern.
Many other major clubs have alleged interest in Alaba, including Real Madrid and PSG. But Chelsea believe they can convince the versatile defender to join them.
AS says that Alaba will listen to what Chelsea have to say and appreciates the interest from Frank Lampard.
They aren’t overly clear on whether they expect a deal to happen on the cheap in January, or whether Chelsea will wait until the summer and sign him on a free transfer.
My verdict?
The original report came from German reporter Christian Falk, who can often be bang on, but has also called a few things wrong.
AS backing up the story also have a mixed history of reliability.
These kinds of stories though will often have substance when more outlets start jumping on it. However, there is also a high chance that this could just be Agent talk in order for Alaba to get a better deal with Bayern, a lot like what happened when Dries Mertens when he was heavily linked with Chelsea recently, but ended up signing a lucrative extension with Napoli.
No reliable UK sources are reporting Chelsea’s interest in Alaba as of yet, but seeing as we have been linked with him before, I would suggest that there is at the very least, decent interest from Chelsea in him.
Do we need him?
Well, my view is that if we want to be the best then we should sign the best, especially if they are available very cheap/free. Alaba is one of the best.
He is versatile and can play centre back, left back, or in midfield, meaning that makes him even more appealing.
Chelsea could allow Marcos Alonso, Emerson Palmieri, and a centre back leave if Alaba comes in, so this would be a very wise and logical move for them if it does transpire.