Chelsea have switched their attention to highly rated Olympique Lyonnais youngster Bradley Barcola after pulling out of the deal to sign Crystal Palace forward Michael Olise.
French news publication RMC Sport reports that the Blues will rival Paris Saint-Germain for the 20-year-old winger, but the Ligue 1 champions remain hopeful of winning the race.
PSG have already seen a €35 million bid plus add-ons rejected by Lyon, who are reluctant to cut ties with Barcola but have not entirely ruled out a departure.
With an agreement between the French clubs lingering, Chelsea have reportedly accelerated efforts to pip their European counterparts to Barcola’s signature.
The Frenchman is one of several exciting talents on Lyon’s roster and one of the most wanted youngsters on the transfer market.
Treble winners Manchester City were previously keen to snap him up, but they have switched their attention to Stade Rennais youngster Jeremy Doku.
Lyon are looking to pocket as much as they can from Barcola’s prospective suitors following an astonishing breakout campaign in the French top flight.
The France under-21 international contributed five goals and nine assists to help Laurent Blanc’s side secure a seventh-place finish despite starting in just 15 of his 26 league appearances.
While his impressive numbers are too good to ignore, his underlying statistics further consolidate his status as one of the finest talents to emerge from the French top flight.
Barcola created ten big chances last term, although he was guilty of spurning six.
He also completed 51% of his dribbles, averaged one key pass per 90 and was featured in the Ligue 1 team of the week once.
Barcola is regarded as a top talent and will be an exciting addition to Mauricio Pochettino’s squad, which lacks a creative spark in the attacking department.
Chelsea have also been linked with a move for Barcola’s teammate Rayan Cherki, but there has been no development on that front, with Lyon determined to keep him for at least one more campaign.
