Exclusive says midfielder “a perfect fit” for Chelsea, who are “one of the favourites” to sign him | OneFootball

Chelsea still have to play some huge and important games before the end of the season, but that doesn’t mean they can’t get into gear making some progress on transfers long before then.

We’ve already got a few deals for this summer lined up, plus one for next summer, and that could just be the start. Today CaughtOffside have an exclusive which claims one of England’s most in demand young players could be on his way to the Bridge, with Chelsea “showing the strongest interest” in him.

Jobe Bellingham is not quite as well know as his brother yet, but he’s well on his way. His brilliant form for Sunderland in the Championship this season is attracting a lot of interest, and apparently Man U, Arsenal, Spurs, Brighton and Crystal Palace are all also lining bids.

It seems Chelsea are front of the queue however – while we’re “yet to make contact” with the rising star, we’re “seen as one of the favourites” as Bellingham’s age and profile make him “a perfect fit for [our] project.”

Prices as low as £20m have been mentioned, although we’d suspect he will be bid up further this summer.

Chelsea face tough task persuading talent he can earn minutes here

Jobe Bellingham with a Chelsea logo. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

As we saw with Bellingham’s older brother, a huge concern will be playing time, and that could be where our bid falls down. Jude went to Borussia Dortmund even when bigger teams were interested because he wanted to be guaranteed to play, and it’s paid off as he eventually earned his mega-transfer to Real Madrid.

Given the competition for Jobe, Chelsea would have to really sell him the idea they can guarantee him regular football – which is perhaps tricky given there are two £100m players and Cole Palmer usually making up our 3 midfield slots.