Reports from Italian media outlet Gazzetta Dello Sport claim that Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho is in the search of a quality striker and is believed to be ready to swoop fro Roma forward Mattia Destro. The reports states that Chelsea are willing to splash €25m for the Italian despite AC Milan’s strong interest in the player. It is believed that the Rossoneri want to take the 23 year old as a direct replacement for Mario Balotelli, the controversial genius who joined Liverpool yesterday.
Destro’s agent Claudio Vigorelli also failed to deny the speculations around his client and might leave Italy in the summer with a lot of clubs interested and especially Jose Mourinho being a keen admirer. Vigorelli was quoted by English tabloid METRO claiming: “I cannot deny he is at the centre of some important situations that could develop. More Milan or Chelsea? The market is unpredictable. These are two interested clubs. Jose Mourinho admires him, while Milan could make some important steps forward very soon.”
Destro scored an impressive 13 league goals despite starting only 14 times under Rudi Garcia last season as Roma finished second in the Serie A standings, as runners up to eventual Champions Juventus. though the capital club would want to keep hold of their player and would realistically like to challenge the Bianconeri for the Scudetto apart from their Champions League commitments.
Chelsea’s need for strikers are well documented as the Blues only have Spanish star Diego Costa in their ranks who arrived from La Liga winners Atletico Madrid in the summer. Despite Didier Drogba’s return, the Ivorian legend isn’t expected to start games given his age. Moreover with Fernando Torres’ poor form and with domestic cup competitions, Champions League and the Premier League to feature in, the Blues will require enough squad depth to challenge on all frontiers.
The report from METRO also mentions that a swap deal involving Torres was perceived last week but Mourinho ruled out Torres’ move away from the club saying he believes that the former Liverpool striker will be back to his best and will score goals. However, that could change if a bid for Destro is accepted.