EPL: Chelsea lead the race to sign a £128 million midfielder, with three midfielders set to depart Stamford Bridge

According to the Telegraph, Chelsea has taken the lead in the race to sign Atletico Madrid midfielder Saul Niguez, who is valued at £128 million.

With Chelsea and Manchester United vying for the midfielder’s signature, Atlectico had opened the door for Niguez to leave the club.

Diego Simeone’s side is willing to let Saul go on loan for the season, with the option to buy included in the deal.

According to reports in Spain earlier this week, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team was ahead of the Blues in their pursuit of the midfielder.

However, The Telegraph reported on Wednesday night that Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea have begun talks with Atletico Madrid and are considering a deal similar to the one they struck with Real Madrid for Mateo Kovacic.

Kovacic joined on a one-year loan from Real Madrid before being made a permanent signing for a fee of £40 million.

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However, before completing Saul’s signing, the Blues would have to let three players go: Ross Barkley, Tiemoue Bakayoko, and Danny Drinkwater.

Manchester United are in a similar situation to Chelsea in their pursuit of Saul, with Solskjaer having to trim his squad to make room for the Spaniard.