Chelsea transfers new: Blues chase down N'Golo Kante but question Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly price tag

The latest transfer news surrounding Stamford Bridge on Tuesday 11 July

Kante starred in France's Euro 2016 campaign (Getty)

Plenty of business on the cards for Chelsea today. Barely 24 hours after N’Golo Kante’s Euro 2016 campaign came to an end and the Blues have moved to open talks in a bid to sign the Frenchman.

According to the Telegraph, the London side are looking to up their efforts amid reports suggesting Leicester have received a £35m offer from Chinese club Shanghai SIPG.

The 25-year-old has allegedly set his heart on a move to Stamford Bridge, however, which means Chelsea will now have to negotiate a fee with the Foxes after activating his release clause.

Alongside Kante, Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly has emerged as another top target for Antonio Conte as the Italian looks to transform Chelsea. However, the initial £34m bid put forward for the defender may not be good enough.

The Blues fear that they will have to pay in excess of £50m to secure the player’s signature instead, the Evening Standard reports. Even though Koulibaly’s main suitors, Chelsea and Everton, hope that the Serie A club will lower their asking price, Napoli’s official line is that they won’t accept anything less than €60m.

The club are also expected to launch a bid for Portugal and Sporting Lisbon midfielder Joao Mario. The Portuguese newspaper A Bola quoted his father as saying: “Joao is hurt by Sporting…he thinks he is not sufficiently valued. Sporting say Joao is worth €60m but they pay him like he's a €10m player!”


 Joao Mario in action for Portugal during the Euro 2016 final in Paris (Getty)

The Blues are reportedly willing to fork out £34m for the player who helped guide Portugal to glory at Euro 2016 in Sunday evening’s final.

Having nearly moved to Stamford Bridge last summer, Arda Turan could yet still make his way to West London, according to the Daily Star. Chelsea have joined the race to sign the Turkish international once again following reports that the former Atletico Madrid man has become unsettled at Barclona.

After joining the Catalan giants last summer, Turan only managed 13 games in all competitions and was left out of all crucial Champions League clashes. Chelsea easily have the cash to match Barcelona’s €25m asking price but face competition from Premier League rivals Arsenal.

Lastly, Chelsea’s under-21 assistant coach Andy Myers has joined Vitesse on a one-year deal as the London club continue to foster their strong ties with the Eredivisie side. The Blues loaned five of their young players to Vitesse last season in a bid to ready them for first team life at Stamford Bridge.

Myers can already expect to work with two Chelsea youngsters, Lewis Baker and Nathan, who were loaned out to the GelreDome this summer. The Daily Mail understands that the coach is likely to return to Chelsea’s Cobham training ground in the future, with the move behing viewed as a short term arrangement.