Chelsea are reportedly showing an interest in signing Real Madrid star Alvaro Carreras as they explore the left-back market. The Blues may be forced to strengthen their defence following the departure of Marc Cucurella, who will join the La Liga giants this summer.
It was confirmed on Monday that Cucurella will move to Madrid on a permanent deal, with the Spanish club announcing that the left-back has signed a six-year contract that runs until the summer of 2032. A deal worth a total of £51.7million, which includes a £47.4million fixed fee, plus a further £4.3million in add-ons, was agreed between Chelsea and Madrid this week.
As a result, Chelsea are now in the market for a new left-back, and reports have emerged claiming that Carreras is now a target. Spanish news outlet AS has claimed that Chelsea are exploring a potential deal for Carreras, with the defender being placed on the Blues’ shortlist of targets for this summer. The report also claims that Madrid are not fully against the idea of selling Carreras this summer, with the defender himself still unsure of what his future holds ahead of next season.
Madrid recently appointed Jose Mourinho as their new manager, and have already put plans into place to sign Ibrahima Konate from Liverpool, Denzel Dumfries from Inter Milan and Bernardo Silva from Manchester City.
Carreras only signed for Madrid last summer after arriving in a €50million (£43million) deal from Benfica, and was previously at Manchester United before his move to Portugal. New Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso is reported to be a big fan of Carreras, which is fuelling the speculation that a move to Stamford Bridge could happen ahead of next season.
The 23-year-old is currently enjoying his summer break, having missed out on a spot in the Spain squad for this summer’s World Cup, which is being held in North America. Monday night saw Spain held to a goalless draw with Cape Verde in their opening fixture, where Cucurella played the full 90 minutes at left-back for his country. Carreras, who has nine caps for Spain’s Under-21 squad, featured 40 times for Madrid during his debut season at the Santiago Bernabeu, including nine in the Champions League.
