When Levi Colwill got injured in pre-season, it was always expected to adversely affect Chelsea. But not even his biggest fans would have predicted just how much. The Blues have been poor at the back this season. And things are not getting any better with time.
After conceding eight goals over two legs against PSG to get knocked out of the Champions League, Chelsea allowed Everton to score thrice past them at the weekend. A lot has been made of their failure to find the back of the net in three straight games. But the Blues are just as bad defensively, if not worse.
It had looked like Chelsea were ready to strengthen at the back in the summer. Personal terms were believed to have been agreed with Jeremy Jacquet. But the move never ended up happening. He will instead join Liverpool. On the other hand, the best the Blues could manage was cutting short Mamdou Sarr’s loan deal and bringing him back to Stamford Bridge.
From what we have seen since then, Sarr is nowhere near ready. Chelsea need an instant injection of genuine quality at the back. And an AC Milan player seems to be on their radar now.
Chelsea willing to make offer for AC Milan centre-back this summer
According to Calciomercato, Chelsea would be ready to put about €40 million euros on the table to convince AC Milan to let Strahinja Pavlovic leave. But at the moment, the Rossoneri do not seem willing to part ways with the defender in the summer.
Pavlovic joined AC Milan in 2024 from RB Salzburg for a transfer fee in the region of €18 million. It would be safe to say that it would take a lot more than that to sign him these days, as he has developed into a key player for the Italian giants.
AC Milan currently sit at second in the league table and also have the second-best defensive record, only behind Cesc Fabregas’ Como. It is not just defensively that he has been decisive though. Pavlovic has scored four times in the Serie A this season as well.
Chelsea’s interest in Pavlovic is good news
Chelsea’s reported interest in Pavlovic has to be viewed as a positive. The fans have called for experience to be brought in for years now. And while the AC Milan defender is not a veteran by any means, he has seen and done his fair share of things in football.
Pavlovic has 52 international caps for Serbia to his name. He is a regular for AC Milan. Other than Italy, he has also played club football in Serbia, France, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria. That is quite the resume for someone who is still just 24 years old.
Thus, if Chelsea are able to sign Pavlovic, they would be getting someone heading towards his prime. But at the same time, he has been around for a while and would not be considered a ‘project signing’ by any stretch of the imagination.
