MANCHESTER CITY are set to battle it out with Chelsea to try and sign Ben Chilwell this summer, according to reports.
The Leicester City left-back, 23, has emerged as Gareth Southgate’s No1 choice in the position over the last 18 months.
And his performances for the Foxes have drawn the attention of Chelsea and City.
According to The Telegraph, Pep Guardiola is likely to have another look at Chilwell for a summer move if he decides a left-back is needed.
Benjamin Mendy has been plagued by injuries since arriving at the Etihad in 2017 while Oleksandr Zinchenko could be pushed further forward into a midfield role.
It is also understood, though, that Frank Lampard made Chilwell a transfer priority for the upcoming window.
With Marcos Alonso and Emerson both struggling to impress this season, a new left-back is certainly on the wish list.
And Chilwell being young and English, with 95 Premier League appearances under his belt after replacing title-winning defender Christian Fuchs, makes him an ideal candidate.
He has impressed once again this term with two goals and three assists, including a goal against Chelsea in February.
However, both sides could be put off by Leicester’s demands.
Brendan Rodgers’ side are in no need to sell, they are financially strong and looking to secure Champions League football for next season.
They held out for £85million from Manchester United for Harry Maguire last summer and the report adds they value Chilwell similarly.
Coronavirus’ impact on the transfer market is still unclear but Leicester will ensure any sale of their academy graduate is on their terms.
Manchester City learnt all about Leicester’s resolve when selling a star player in 2018 when they spent a club-record £60m to land Riyad Mahrez.
They broke that last year on midfielder Rodri but they may well be forced into smashing it once again to get Chilwell.
For Chelsea, meanwhile, their record transfer stands at the £71.6m they paid for Kepa Arrizabalaga in 2018.
They look set to spent around £53m on RB Leipzig forward Timo Werner after Liverpool pulled out of the race due for financial reasons.
Reports at the weekend suggested the Blues are “confident” a deal can be arranged with their FA Cup quarter-final opponents.
However, should Leicester’s asking price put them off, they have also been linked with Porto’s Alex Telles, AS Monaco man Fode Ballo-Toure and Robin Gosens of Atalanta.
