Chelsea have reportedly been told Ajax’s asking price to sell Jorrel Hato, as football.london understands that the Blues are in advanced talks to sign the young defender.
The Blues have already made significant strides in the transfer window this summer as they look to push on under Enzo Maresca, having secured Champions League football for the coming season before lifting the Club World Cup in America.
Chelsea have already seen the likes of Liam Delap, Joao Pedro, Dario Essugo and Jamie Gittens join the ranks this summer, while a previous deal for Estevao Willian will see the Brazilian wonderkid finally join up with the squad.
But the club are not done yet, with talks progressing over a deal for RB Leipzig star Xavi Simons in addition to a move for Ajax defender Hato. football.london understands Chelsea are in club-to-club talks with Leipzig about a move for Simons with the Bundesliga side hoping for around €65million (£56million), and an agreement on personal terms is very close.
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Ajax look to be open to a sale for Hato, but according to De Telegraaf they are targeting a fee in the region of €55million (£47.7million) to €60million (£52.1million). football.london understands that the Eredivisie side have also enquired about the possibility of signing Chelsea youngster Ishe Samuels-Smith as part of the deal, though no formal approach has yet been made.
For his part, Samuels-Smith has made it clear he wishes to join Strasbourg and will fly from his family home in Manchester to eastern France to finalise a move once he gets the green light from his camp. The 19-year-old defender’s entourage are currently in France discussing a permanent switch to Chelsea’s sister club, with personal terms the centre of conversation in recent days.
Sources close to the deal told football.london on Wednesday that it had been a slow few days of negotiations but there is hope a deal can be wrapped up by the end of the week.
