Chelsea’s formidable defender Antonio Rudiger will be billed as the ‘new Chiellini’ if he signs a deal with Juventus next season.
The Serie A giants have reportedly already offered the German centre-back a four-year deal worth £22.5 million, and they now want to make him the centre-piece of a rebuilt defence.
Juve believe that by giving the 29-year-old top billing in Turin, it will hep lure him away from rivals, who are also chasing the German's signature when his contract expires in the summer, The Sun reports.
Club legend Giorgio Chiellini, 37, has spent 18 years at Juventus, playing more than 400 top-flight league games and winning nine Serie A titles.
But despite his longevity, he remains the heartbeat of the back line, and Juve bosses want him to mentor Rudiger for one year, before he finally hangs up his boots.
Rudiger is set to be out of contract at the end of the season and the Blues cannot offer him an extension because of UK government sanctions placed on club owner Roman Abramovich.
Prior to the sanction, Rudiger had been rumoured to be considering a contract extension at the club where he has established himself as an exceptional talent since joining for £31million from Roma in 2017.
The defender has already been linked with moves to the likes of Newcastle, Manchester United, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, but it is believed he prefers northern Italy as his next destination.
Rudiger is one of three senior stars who will become free agents at the end of the season, along with club captain Cesar Azpilicueta and Dane Andreas Christensen.
The UK government sanction placed on Chelsea, with the club up for sale, is causing upheavals off and on the pitch.
‘You don’t know what’s going on from day to day so to focus on football and what we can affect, is what we do,’ Mason Mount told The Times this weekend.
As reported by Sportsmail last week, the sanction against the club will impact Chelsea’s ability to operate in the transfer market, not just in terms of retaining out-of-contract players, but also attracting new talent.
Agents have warned they will be looking elsewhere for their clients with the Blues' ability to sign players up in the air and still no clarity over new owners.
Boss Thomas Tuchel has also admitted that the impact of the sale of club has an unpredictable impact on negotiations with players who are out of contract in the summer.
'The bottom line is maybe we can't help it - it is what it is,' Tuchel said. 'You never know maybe it has a positive effect on the negotiations or maybe it has a negative effect.
'We cannot predict and I would like not to predict on scenarios because you just lose focus, but everyone has a different situation and feels different about it (the sale).
'I hope for the best outcome still, I think we have something to offer still. Chelsea are a strong club and will stay a strong club.
