Ben Chilwell is set to tell Leicester this week he wants to quit for Chelsea, according to The Mirror.
Frank Lampard is determined to sign a new left-back this summer and has earmarked Chilwell as his top target for the position in his squad.
Although Chilwell is under contract until 2024, it is understood he sees his future at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues will have to fork out a significant fee for the England international, with the Foxes set to demand around £80million.
New contract
If the Foxes do decide to cash in on Chilwell they will certainly pocket a handsome transfer fee.
This is because they tied the left-back down to a new contract as recently as October of last year.
Simply put, City will be in a strong negotiation position if and when the time comes to sell Chilwell, who spoke positively about his future at the King Power Stadium upon signing his new deal.
“Leicester’s always felt like the right place for me. I’ve had fantastic support at every level since I arrived nine years ago and I’ve always felt opportunities would come if I continued to work hard,” he said.
“That’s a great feeling to have as a young player.
“The Club has really big, long-term plans and it’s really exciting to know that I’m going to be part of that.”
As mentioned above, it will likely take a heft sum to lure Chilwell away from Leicester.
Luckily, Lampard is set to be backed with funds.
The Telegraph claim Chelsea’s hierarchy have allotted set aside a £150m transfer budget to make up for lost time in the summer window.
Manchester City interest
Should Chelsea wish to sign Chilwell, then they may not just have the barrier of convincing Leicester to sell to overcome, with Manchester City now said to be showing an interest in the England international.
According to the i paper, Manchester City are ready to compete with Chelsea for the full-back.
The paper claims though that Chilwell want to see if Pep Guardiola remains at Man City after the summer before making a decision on his future and that Leicester have a strict policy of letting just one main player leave the club each year.
The report states that a fee upwards of £60 million would be needed to convince the midlands club to sell to either Chelsea or Man City.
Chelsea to wait as Leicester identify replacement
According to The Daily Mail, Leicester are targeting a move for Southampton’s Ryan Bertrand after bracing themselves for Ben Chilwell’s exit.
The England left-back has been heavily linked with a move for Chilwell, but the report claims Frank Lampard’s side will wait until the summer to seal a big-money deal for the highly-rated full-back.