Premier League champions Chelsea have finally agreed in principle with AS Monaco over a £40m transfer fee for signing Tiemoue Bakayoko.
The French midfielder will now arrive in London to complete a medical ahead of his move to Chelsea.
Chelsea are keen on signing the defensive midfielder as Conte looks to bolster the squad as the Blues return to Champions League football in the upcoming season and also to defend the Premier League title.
The Blues bosses have been trying to seal the deal for weeks and now finally they have reached an agreement with Ligue 1 champions Monaco.
The Blues will have to splurge a staggering £40m plus add-ons, as the 22-year-old midfielder will sign a five-year deal with Chelsea.
Bakayoko’s brother Abdoulaye dropped a massive hint that the deal was on the verge of completion by posting an image with a black background along with a caption that read – CFC, and also with a blue dot and strong arm emoji.
Earlier, rumours claimed that Manchester United have handed Chelsea another huge blow in the transfer market as the Red Devils are set to hijack Blues target Tiemoue Bakayoko after ‘agreeing a fee’ with Monaco.
But now sources have confirmed that the Blues have agreed a fee with Monaco for Bakayoko, despite late interest from Manchester United.
Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has made Bakayoko as his top midfield target and wants to pair him with N’Golo Kante
His arrival at the Stamford Bridge would see Nemanja Matic leaving the club with Manchester United in pole position to rope him in.
It is also understood that Nathaniel Chalobah will be offloaded as Watford have shown huge interest in securing his signatures.
Conte wants to add reinforcements in key areas before the start of the new season and Bakayoko will now become Chelsea’s second major signing this summer following Antonio Rudiger and a back-up goalkeeper Willy Caballero.
The Italian boss is also keen on signing a new wing back and is currently negotiating a deal for Real Madrid man Danilo.
After missing out on Lukaku, Conte is also desperate to rope in a new striker. Dortmund have offered Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for £70m to the Blues but the Italian boss prefers to bring in either Alvaro Morata or Andrea Belotti.