Chelsea have been heavily linked with a move for Inter Milan centre-forward Lautaro Martinez but the Blues look all set to lose out on him – as per reports.
The 22-year-old has been at the top of his game this season scoring 11 goals in just 22 Serie A games for the Italian side and it seems like Antonio Conte will not be able to hold onto him any longer.
Lautaro Martinez joined Inter Milan from Racing Club back 2018 and he still has three years left on his current deal but clubs like Chelsea, Barcelona and Manchester City have shown heavy interest in signing him during the summer.
While Conte would love to see Martinez commit his long-term future to the club but given the player has a €111 million release clause, the San Siro outfit might very well offload him and use the money to rebuild their squad.
Up until now, many reports had suggested Chelsea were one of the favourites to land the player but now it seems Barcelona have stolen a march over them in the transfer feal.
Various rumours are suggesting Barcelona are most likely to secure a deal for Lautaro Martinez in the summer and former Argentinian legend Mario Kempes has also advised him to join Barcelona at the end of this season.
“Inter is a great club, known throughout the world, but Barcelona is totally different. The train only passes once in your life,” he was quoted as saying.
“Playing with Lionel Messi would be fantastic for him. But if he stays at Inter, that could also be good for him to keep gaining experience.
“For a few years now, he has shown he is a great number 9. He showed it at Inter and with Argentina.”
Barcelona are viewing Martinez as a long-term replacement for Luis Suarez and hence are willing to pay the £97 million release clause for the player which is truly bad news for Chelsea.
Frank Lampard has not signed any new players over the past two transfer windows and he is badly in need of a new striker before the new English season begins.
But now with Lautaro Martinez all set to ditch the Premier League and join Barcelona, Chelsea will quickly have to shift focus to another top-class centre-forward.
There have been hints that the Blues are keeping tabs on Real Madrid flop Luka Jovic and maybe Lampard will try and bring him onboard after failing to land Lautaro Martinez from Inter Milan.
