Chelsea appear to be losing out in the battle to sign highly touted Croatian striker Andrej Kramaric. That's according to the latest reports from Italy which suggest Serie A giants Juventus lead the way.
Writing for the official website of Sky Italia reporter Gianluca Di Marzio, GianlucaDiMarzio.com, David Amoyal has suggested both the Blues and the Old Lady have been in talks to lure Kramaric away from HNK Rijeka:
Andrej Kramaric is on the wish of many top European clubs. The Croatian prospect has strength and goals in his blood and now Juventus and Chelsea are in a battle to acquire him. Both clubs have met with Rijeka, they have also held discussions with the striker’s father. The price to acquire him is between 10 and 12 million that are negotiable.
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Juventus has already reached an agreement in principle with Kramaric: a five year with annual salary of 1.5 million before taxes.
Chelsea have the resources to sign any player, but will still face a tough task beating Juve to the punch in this case. The Turin club always seem to be desperate to freshen up their ranks at striker.
In the last few seasons alone, the Bianconeri have brought Spaniards Alvaro Morata and Fernando Llorente, along with Argentine Carlos Tevez to Serie A. It seems the Juve hierarchy are already on the lookout for the next big thing.
Whether Kramaric is that or not, remains open to conjecture. However, there's no denying his burgeoning reputation.
The prolific 23-year-old, who has scored 25 goals this season, per WhoScored , is already drawing favourable comparisons to one of his country's all-time greats, as Goal writer Mark Doyle noted:
That Kramaric is generating such giddy transfer talk is unsurprising. This, after all, is a player who has been compared with Davor Suker. However, in truth, Kramaric is a very different player to Croatia's iconic No.9. He is more mobile and more versatile, capable of playing anywhere across the forward line, and while he favours his right foot, he has a strong left.
Stylistic contrasts aside, any time a player is compared with a finisher of Suker's impeccable quality, clubs ought to take notice. It's a sign of Kramaric's potential.
If he has the roving characteristics of today's modern forward, then it's no wonder Chelsea want Kramaric. The Blues are currently relying on Diego Costa, the ex-Atletico Madrid man who is in the form of his life.
Costa has scored 10 goals in 11 games for manager Jose Mourinho's Premier League leaders, per WhoScored . Yet as good as he is, there's always injury concerns with Costa. He's been bothered by persistent hamstring problems for over a year now.
That concern isn't eased by Chelsea only having 36-year-old veteran Didier Drogba in reserve, along with Loic Remy, a pacy but brittle alternative. It makes sense for Mourinho to be shopping for a potential young star up front.
However, it's looking ever likely that Juventus will pull the rug out from under the Portuguese boss. During a recent interview with Sky Italia (h/t London Evening Standard reporter Tom Collomosse), Kramaric waxed lyrical about a move to Turin:
For every player in the Croatian league, it would be a dream to play for Juventus.
Serie A is one of the biggest competitions and I’d love to play in Italy one day. I know that Juve have a number of excellent, world-class players.
But I have confidence in my ability and my potential. I never surrender and I know I can show my talent in front of the coach and the fans.
That doesn't sound like a player who's going to be swayed by the money on offer at Stamford Bridge. Mourinho will likely have to widen his search for a talented young striker to bide his time behind Costa.
//from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1xMkwC3
via IFTTT November 27, 2014 at 09:25AM
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