Chelsea lead Raphinha race

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Chelsea have entered the race for the services of Leeds United winger Raphinha, and as things stand at the moment according to David Ornstein of The Athletic, they’ve taken the lead ahead of Arsenal and Barcelona.

Barcelona have been linked with Raphinha for a long time and it was believed that the 25-year-old was keen to join Xavi Hernandez’s revolution at the Camp Nou, but still in severe financial difficulties, the Catalans haven’t come nowhere near a suitable offer for him.

Leeds are believed to want a fee in excess of £55 million, and like Barcelona, Arsenal also don’t appear willing to meet that demand at the moment. On the other hand, Chelsea have already indicated willingness to pay the asked amount, and the negotiations between them and Leeds are apparently in an advanced stage.

Chelsea are in a process of making some changes to their attacking line, with Thomas Tuchel keen to add versatile forwards to his ranks, players who can play on either flank or through the middle if needed. This seems to be one of the reasons why Romelu Lukaku’s return to Stamford Bridge hasn’t worked out, and why the Belgian striker is on the verge of going back to Inter Milan for the upcoming season, while the likes of Kai Havertz, Timo Werner and Christian Pulisic all remain in Tuchel’s plans.

Leeds signed Raphinha from French side Stade Rennais two years ago for a reported fee of €18m, and it’s obvious that they’re about to make quite a profit on a player whose quality is in such demand these days. In 66 matches in all competitions for Leeds, Raphinha has scored 17 goals and produced 11 assists.