Chelsea have intensified the talks to sign Niklas Sule from Bayern Munich this summer, according to The Athletic.
The London Blues will be in need of a towering presence in their back line from next season, with the contract of Thiago Silva about to expire and the experienced Brazilian turning 37 in September. Manager Thomas Tuchel has communicated his desire for a new centre-back to the club hierarchy and Sule is at the top of their wish list at the moment.
The 25-year-old is about to enter the final 12 months of his contract with Bayern, and his future is unclear. Amid the ongoing turmoil at the club which has seen head coach Hans-Dieter Flick announce his departure from the club, there has been no move from the Bundesliga champions to extend Sule’s stay at the Allianz Arena as of yet.
It seems that, despite the imminent departures of David Alaba and Jerome Boateng from Bayern at the end of the season, not everyone at the club is of the opinion that Sule is ready to take on the burden. This is the situation Chelsea are looking to exploit.
On the other hand, there is a feeling that the potential arrival of Julian Nagelsmann, currently in charge of the team at RB Leipzig, in Flick’s place might change things. Nagelsmann and Sule worked rather successfully together at Hoffenheim in 2016-17, when the defender managed to earn his status as a Germany international.
The proposed creation of the so-called ‘European Super League’, in which Chelsea are one of the 12 main actors, might also make Sule reluctant to make the move to Stamford Bridge. There is plenty of uncertainty regarding the fate of all the clubs involved, with UEFA, FIFA and the national football associations threatening with expulsion from all other competitions. Bayern are not among them, having rejected the invitation along with Borussia Dortmund.
