Antonio Conte wants Stephan Lichtsteiner at Chelsea as Juventus close in on Dani Alves
Italy boss to raid former club for five-time Serie A-winning Swiss star and also likes midfielder Stefano Sturaro
ANTONIO CONTE wants to raid his old club and make £12million-rated Stephan Lichtsteiner is first signing at Chelsea.
With Juventus nearing a deal to bring in new right-back, Dani Alves, the incoming Stamford Bridge boss is anxious the complete the Swiss star’s signing as soon as possible.
Lichtsteiner moved to Turin in June 2011 — just a month after Conte was appointed as manager of the Italian giants.
After winning a Scudetto in every one of his five seasons in Serie A, the 32-year-old appears ready to move on.
Conte is believed to have offered Lichtsteiner a three-year-contract with a guarantee of first-team football in a bid to entice the star to move to London.
Related Stories
The defender, who is currently preparing for Euro 2016 with Swizterland, has asked for a few days to reflect and think about the deal on the table.
The current Italy boss fought hard to bring the defender from Lazio to Juventus and the pair struck up a strong relationship during their three years of working together.
Lichtsteiner would also like to test himself in the Premier League.
The tough tackler would have no problem adapting to the intense and physical nature of English football.
Juve boss Max Allegri would be happy to let the right-back leave this summer, with replacements close to arriving.
The new Chelsea is also looking at Bianconeri ace Stefano Sturaro in central midfield with Radja Nainggolan likely to stay at Roma.
Sturaro was one of the final players selected by Italy boss Conte, as he just pipped Napoli midfielder Jorginho into the 23-man squad.
But he is likely to be key at Euro 2016, and an impressive tournament could make a move possible.
Juve have already rejected a £15m offer from Southampton for Sturaro but would be more open to offers of around £20m.
The 23-year-old would become a huge asset to Conte and Chelsea.
Sturaro’s natural aggression and intense plays means he is more adept to playing in the Premier League than in Serie A.