Chelsea 'could land' £51m star after Koulibaly at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea failing to sign Nathan Ake isn’t a disaster if they manage to bring Kalidou Koulibaly and Presnel Kimpembe to Stamford Bridge, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Dutch defender looked on course to join Raheem Sterling in swapping Manchester for London, until reports confirmed that he will be staying with the reigning Premier League champions.

According to The Athletic, the Blues were ‘pushing hard’ and ‘hopeful’ of securing a £45m deal for the Netherlands international to return to the club following his lack of game-time at City.

But the same source have since stated that Chelsea won’t be signing the versatile defender, with City happy for him to fight for his place under Pep Guardiola.

Despite missing out on Ake, Chelsea have already bolstered their defensive options with the addition of Napoli star Kalidou Koulibaly, who’s made the switch to the Premier League for £33.8m.

Meanwhile, Thomas Tuchel’s side are also in talks with PSG over a move for Presnel Kimpembe, who could cost around £51m.

And Jones reckons that securing deals for Koulibaly and Kimpembe would more than soften the blow of missing out on Ake.

He told GIVEMESPORT: “The plan for Ake was that Chelsea could use his versatility and play him at left back as well as centre back, so let’s see how Chelsea move from here.

“We know they still want Kimpembe, and most people think he could yet be landed as well as Koulibaly. So actually, this situation with Ake is not a disaster at all if these two land.”

If Tuchel manages to get the France international on board, not only would his arrival go some way to replacing Antonio Rudiger’s experience, but Chelsea would be getting a top quality operator at top-flight level.

Kimpembe, who’s racked up more