New development: Chelsea move ahead of Liverpool & Arsenal in £50m transfer battle | OneFootball

Chelsea have reportedly moved into the lead in the race to sign £50m-rated Bournemouth defender Dean Huijsen this summer.

Liverpool and Arsenal have also been among Huijsen’s admirers, while there’s also mention of Real Madrid.

That’s according to the Independent, who now state that Chelsea look to be emerging as the favourites for the talented 20-year-old.

Huijsen looks like a player with a big future in the game after some impressive form for the Cherries, and it’s surely going to be hard for them to keep hold of him.

The Spain international could fit in really well with Chelsea’s philosophy, as the Blues have often tended to target the best young players in world football for their long-term project.

Dean Huijsen in action for Spain against the Netherlands (Photo by Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images)

Dean Huijsen transfer saga takes a new twist

It had recently been reported that Liverpool sources believed they were in pole position to sign Huijsen this summer.

That’s what was reported via Chelsea writer Simon Phillips on Substack, but it seems the situation has now changed again.

The Independent state that the west London giants look ready to offer Huijsen a seven-year contract, and one imagines a big offer like that will be tempting to any player.

It perhaps looks a bit of a gamble to be joining CFC at the moment as their project hasn’t really developed as many would’ve hoped.

Liverpool and Arsenal might be more tempting from that point of view, but at the same time Huijsen would probably be guaranteed more playing time at Stamford Bridge.

The former Juventus youngster looks like a clear upgrade on the likes of Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo and Trevoh Chalobah.

However, there’s no guarantee Huijsen would start a lot of games when Liverpool have Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.

Arsenal, meanwhile, have a very strong defence containing William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, and Jakub Kiwior, while others like Ben White, Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori can also play centre-back.