KEY POINTS

  • Conte has lost out on a number of targets to rival clubs this summer.
  • Chelsea have thus far made 4 signings - Caballero, Rudiger, Morata and Bakayoko.

Antonio Conte's summer of woe could be set to get deeper after Tottenham Hotspur launched a late bid to hijack Chelsea's move for Swansea City striker Fernando Llorente.

The Blues were said to be in advanced talks to land the striker and were only waiting on Swansea to sign Wilfried Bony to complete the deal. The two clubs were also said to have been close to agreeing on a fee between €10m - €15m before Spurs' late approach.

According to Spanish publication AS, Mauricio Pochettino is keen to take the striker to White Hart Lane and are willing to improve on any offer that Chelsea have offered. The Blues had dangled the Champions League carrot to tempt Llorente into the move, but Tottenham can offer him the same after finishing second behind Chelsea in the Premier League last season.

The only advantage that the west London club have over their north London counterparts is that the 32-year-old striker played under Antonio Conte during their stint together at Juventus. Llorente looks certain to leave Swansea on the final day of the transfer window but it remains to be seen whether he joins the Argentine at White Hart Lane or the Italian at Stamford Bridge. Everton were also said to be interested but are yet to launch a concrete offer for his services.

Fernando Llorente
Fernando Llorente looks certain to leave the Liberty Stadium this summer with Chelsea and Tottenham interested Getty

Conte is certain to be infuriated if he loses yet another summer transfer target to direct rival after failing with moves for Romelu Lukaku, Danilo and most recently Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. The manager is keen to bring in reinforcements before the transfer window shuts on Thursday (31 August), but is finding it hard t add to the four signings he has already made.

Lukaku was linked with Chelsea throughout the summer but at the last minute chose to join Manchester United, similarly, Danilo was also said to be close to moving to Stamford Bridge, before changing his mind to join Pep Guardiola's revolution at the Etihad Stadium.

Oxlade-Chamberlain, on the other hand, rejected a move to Chelsea despite the club having agreed on a fee with Arsenal, and he is now close to completing a move to Liverpool.