With Ruben Amorim leaving to Manchester United at the end of this week and striker Viktor Gyokeres also looking set to leave in the summer, it could be the start of major changes at Sporting Club de Portugal, and that could affect the future of Ousmane Diomande.
The defender is wanted by a lot of top clubs, and that includes Chelsea, at least according to a report in Portuguese paper record, as translated here by SportWitness.
Also keen are Bayern Munich and Arsenal – although it’s hard to see the Gunners investing even more in defence when attack is so clearly their issue. Chelsea are stacked at the back too in terms of numbers – but their defensive weakness shows they still haven’t quite cracked the code, so it’s no surprise to see these Diomande links continue.
The 20 year old is a rock at the heart of Sporting’s defence, and has a release clause of €80m. The expectation from Portugal is that they’d accept less than that however.
Diomande arrival will need defensive reshuffle
Before signing a new central defender, Chelsea will have to sell at least one of their current options. At the moment, Wesley Fofana and Levi Colwill are in favour, and they don’t look to be going anywhere soon. Behind them, Tosin Adarabioyo has not really convinced, but the fact he arrived on a free in the summer probably protects him from an imminent move.
Benoit Badiashile and Axel Disasi, who look fine in the cups but haven’t convinced in the first team, therefore feel the most vulnerable. If a taker can be found for either at a good price, and Diomande can be snatched away from the other interested parties, it looks a clear upgrade we can make without too much fuss.
