Chelsea may have moved ahead of Liverpool in race for £42m transfer | OneFootball

Chelsea may reportedly be ahead of Liverpool now in the race for the transfer of one of Europe’s top central defenders outside of the traditional big five leagues.

The Blues are being linked strongly with Feyenoord centre-back David Hancko, who has also been a Liverpool target, as CaughtOffside recently revealed.

Hancko has impressed during his time in the Eredivisie and it seems his future is now in some doubt, with Chelsea one of the most interested clubs at the moment, according to TEAMtalk.

The west London giants could do with bringing in an upgrade on the likes of Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile, while Axel Disasi’s future is probably uncertain after his loan move to Aston Villa.

What next for David Hancko amid Chelsea and Liverpool transfer links?

Liverpool could do well to sign Hancko in the near future, but the Slovakia international probably isn’t as much of a priority for the Reds at the moment.

Of course, that could change if Virgil van Dijk ends up leaving at the end of his contract this summer, but keeping him would make sense as the club’s current priority.

David Hancko in action for Slovakia (Photo by Christian Hofer/Getty Images)

Chelsea, by contrast, surely need to strengthen at the back if they are to rebuild into becoming genuine Premier League title contenders again any time soon.

Enzo Maresca has done a decent job since taking over at Stamford Bridge, but there’s still room for improvement in this youthful and inexperienced squad.

Bringing in someone like Hancko could help as he’s a slightly older player, which could help balance out the youngsters elsewhere in the team.

TEAMtalk also mention the likes of Tottenham and Juventus as possible suitors for the 27-year-old, though, so it seems this story is still somewhat up in the air.