Chelsea are reportedly interested in Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Kouadio Kone and the Frenchman could be an ideal heir to N'Golo Kante in Graham Potter's side.
Could Chelsea sign Kouadio Kone?
According to German publication Sport Bild (via Sport Witness), Chelsea and PSG are both interested in signing the 21-year-old this summer, with the Blues currently holding the edge as they have already made contact with the Bundesliga side about the possibility of bringing him to Stamford Bridge.
The newspaper suggests that Kone has already discussed his future transfer with Monchengladbach sporting director Roland Virkus and dreams of playing in the Premier League, which surely puts Chelsea in a strong position ahead of the transfer window re-opening.
According to SportBILD via Gladbach Live, the German side have also recently reduced their valuation of the midfielder from €45m (£39m) to around €30m (£26m), which could represent a bargain fee for Todd Boehly given the fees he has spent since his takeover.
The young midfielder has been a regular in Daniel Farke's side since arriving from Toulouse in the summer of 2021, making 26 Bundesliga appearances last season and averaging a superb 6.99 rating from WhoScored for his performances.
He has continued that fine form in the 2022/23 campaign, averaging a strong 6.83 rating across his 23 appearances in the German top flight.
For context, this would rank him as the fourth-best performer at Chelsea (of those to make at least t len eague appearances), while his return of 2.7 tackles per game is only bettered by Enzo Fernandez in Potter's squad.
The Argentina international has enjoyed a strong start to life at Stamford Bridge following his eye-watering £106m move from Benfica in January, averaging a 7.11 rating from WhoScored for his performances in the Premier League.
However, he was more of a creative influence in Portugal, contributing 1.8 key passes per league game for Benfica, compared to just 0.7 in the Premier League, which suggests that he has adapted his role under Potter.
The signing of Kone could allow the Frenchman to do the dirty work in midfield and free up Fernandez to be at his creative best, as Kante has done at Chelsea since signing from Leicester City in 2016.
Kone is certainly in the Kante mould, as FBref ranks him in the top 20% of midfielders across Europe for tackles, and in the top 1% for successful take-ons, which emphasises the dynamism he could add to Potter's side.
The Monchengladbach star certainly lives up to Jacek Kulig's description of him as a "warrior" and for just £26m, he could be the ideal man to replace the ageing, injury-prone Kante at Stamford Bridge.