CHELSEA will have to triumph over former manager Jose Mourinho’s strong festival to sign Bosnian prodigy Amar Dedic.
But Newcastle are also in the transfer tussle for the 21-year-old Red Bull Salzburg star.
And Arsenal, Barcelona and Inter Milan have all made moves for the exciting right-back.
SunSport can now reveal that Chelsea are keeping an eye on Dedic’s progress ahead of the January move window.
Les Bleus have sent a scout to all of their Champions League games this season, plus at least 4 league games since November such as the Euro 2024 qualifiers for Bosnia.
Similarly, Newcastle are sticking by Dedic, 12 caps, and was in the stands for Red Bull Salzburg’s last 3 Champions League games, as well as a couple of Bosnia games.
Toon needs to bring in a flexible defender to provide politics and festivity for Kieran Trippier and the left-backs when, especially if Lewis Hall ends up returning to Chelsea this summer.
And Eddie Howe may be boosted by the fact that Dedic has the same agent as Magpies’ ace, Joelinton.
Dedic is a flexible right-back who can play in total defence (on the left) and is already the captain of the club.
He arrived here through Red Bull Salzburg’s youth academy and was on the club’s books when Erling Haaland spent two years with the Austrian giants before joining Borussia Dortmund; Dedic was on loan at Liefering during that time.
However, he is now impressing in the first at the Red Bull Arena.
And his performances prompted a £21. 5m bid from Roma last summer, with Mourinho a fan desperate to sign him.
Salzburg, however, rejected the offer and Dedic remains a key player in the team, helping Gerhard Struber’s side regain the top spot in the Austrian Bundesliga.
However, they face a tricky task to retain their rising star in 2024.
Roma remain interested, but could pull out of the race as Mourinho’s existing contract expires at the end of the season, so the Serie A side will be reluctant to prioritise the Portuguese’s goals.
Dedic signed a new contract in January, tying him to the Austrian champions until 2027.
The most skilful player has scored five goals and provided three assists in 25 appearances this season, and is part of a defence that has so far conceded just ten goals in the league.
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