Chelsea are weighing up a move for Newcastle captain Jamaal Lascelles, according to The Sun.
The Sun report that Antonio Conte is looking for young and home-grown talent in a bid to strengthen his faltering defence and comply with the Premier League’s home-grown regulations.
Lascelles very much fits the bill. A combative, athletic and dependable defender whose natural leadership qualities earned him the armband at St. James Park. With John Terry’s days at Stamford Bridge appearing numbered and Gary Cahill repeatedly proving that he cannot be relied upon, Lascelles could be the answer to Conte’s defensive puzzle.
Our defence was the primary cause of the shortfalls of last campaign. In the first two seasons of Mourinho’s return, the back four looked formidable – but unfortunately that didn’t last.
On too many occasions last season were we exposed at the back, and it costed us dearly. Conte has taken up the managerial duties here and has already made progress in fixing our leaking defence. He brought in David Luiz in the summer, who bar the humiliation at the Emirates has scarcely put a foot wrong. We have also seen immediate improvement after switching to a back three. Lascelles could be the next step in the right direction for us.
The prospect of a back three made up of Andreas Christensen, Kurt Zouma and Lascelles is mouthwatering. They’re all under the age of 22 and if allowed to grow together – our defence could be set up for success for a decade.
Whether or not our interest in Lascelles is genuine remains to be seen, but this is the profile of player we should be targeting as we look to rebuild.
