While Sterling has agreed personal terms and is keen on a return to London with the club, De Ligt appears to currently prefer a move to Germany with the Bundesliga champions. Bayern have been stepping up efforts to sign the 22-year-old centre-half in recent weeks, having received encouragement from his camp. There is a belief that German football may suit his style better at this point in his career, although he is of course open to an offer from Chelsea. However, the London club could be left behind as Bayern are currently reluctant to pay Juve’s £60m-plus asking fee, or even come close. Chelsea have prepared alternatives and the signing of Sterling will see them prioritize the central midfielder. Thomas Tuchel was shortchanged by the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, which saw them turn to De Ligt in the first place. Nathan Ake is also an option, and Chelsea have previously considered Alessandro Bastoni and Milan Skriniar, although the former is unlikely to leave Inter Milan and the latter looks set for Paris Saint-Germain. The club need to reshape the squad and will listen to offers for Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech and Callum Hudson-Odoi. Milan’s interest in Ziguez is known, but at the moment there is a huge gap between the two clubs’ valuations. A move for Cristiano Ronaldo has not been completely ruled out, especially as Chelsea are not currently looking for a long-term number nine given the state of flux for Romelu Lukaku. The new hierarchy at Stamford Bridge have weighed in on the deal, although Manchester United would be very reluctant to sell to another English club. The situation could be affected by the fact that he only has one year left on his contract and what happens next in terms of his availability. United are waiting to see if he agrees to go on the pre-season trip to Thailand on Friday, as his absence would represent the start of an attempt to force-arm a move. Sterling gives Chelsea a dynamic change in attack, with a deal understood to be £45m with £10m of add-ons possible.
