Rumour: Chelsea chase Hamburg’s Hakan Calhanoglu dubbed the “next Mesut Ozil”

Hamburg’s Turkish midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu reacts after the German first division Bundesliga football match Hamburger SV vs Borussia Dortmund

Chelsea are chasing Hakan Calhanoglu, who has been dubbed the ‘new Mesut Ozil’ after an impressive season at Hamburg, according to the Daily Mail.

Calhanoglu, linked to Arsenal, has been superb in the Bundesliga this season while Hamburg have struggled and he has attracted a lot of interest for his services.

He is thought to be commanding a fee in the region of £8.5 million and is likely to leave the German club in the summer.

Despite Chelsea’s lack of firepower in their goal-scoring department, it is believed that Jose Mourinho will step up his pursuit of Calhanoglu over the summer transfer window.

He has had Chelsea scouts watch him several times this season and even scored a 45-yard free kick in an unlikely 3-0 victory over last year’s Champions League finalists, Borussia Dortmund.

Preliminary discussions between the two clubs have taken place and Chelsea are understood to value Calhanoglu at around £7.5 million. However, Hamburg want closer to £12m for their 20-year-old star.

Calhanoglu’s performances have drawn comparisons between himself and Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil, who is also of Turkish descent and moved to England for £42 million last summer.