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According to Sky Sports Italy journalist, Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea Football Club have inquired the possibilities of signing Belgian forward Dries Mertens.
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With Blues' striker Olivier Giroud edging closer to a move to Inter Milan, the Londoners would be looking to secure the signing of the Napoli striker, in an attempt to bolster their squad's attacking options.
Mertens has been linked with a move to Chelsea for quite some time now, but the stakes increased when Inter Milan joined the race for the attacker's signature this transfer window. But, with Romelu Lukaku already snapped up from Manchester United and Christian Eriksen also announced yesterday, the blue half of Milan won't desperate to make an immediate move for Mertens.
The Nerazzurri were in constant contact with the representatives of the former PSV Eindhoven player, and had inquired about his physical condition due to his recent injury.
The 32-year-old Belgian has bagged himself nine goals and four assists for Napoli in all competitions this season. He is understood to be looking for €6 million a year with his new contract, wherever that may be, and the report suggests the difference could be made up by the inclusion of bonuses.
Chelsea's transfer ban was withdrawn this winter and, since then, it was expected that the English giants will have a hefty transfer budget to spend as Frank Lampard continues to rebuild the squad after the departure of stars like Eden Hazard, Gary Cahill and David Luiz last year. But to the contrary, Chelsea are taking the business to the end of the window, with just 3 days left.
Mertens would be a great addition to the squad with England striker Tammy Abraham out with an injury, and his Belgian counterpart Michy Batshuayi failing to perform as per the expectations of Lampard.
Chelsea are currently third on the Premier League table, and face a tough Champions League round of 16 tie against Bayern Munich next month.
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