Chelsea yet to bid for Andrea Belotti, says Torino chief as he confirms £88MILLION release clause
President Urbano Cairo insists that the Italian outfit have not received any official bids for the striker
Sponsored by
CHELSEA are yet to bid for Torino striker Andrea Belotti, according to club president Urbano Cairo.
The Italian club have confirmed that they are not budging from their £88m valuation of the 23-year-old forward.
Chelsea continue their quest to find a long-term replacement for Diego Costa, with Belotti remaining a key target.
Belotti established himself as a pivotal figure within the Torino side following his remarkable 28-goal campaign last year.
Torino chief Cairo , "He has a €100m release clause.
"For now no-one has come in for him. I'm glad he's with us and I hope he can stay.
"I want to understand his intentions, I'm happy for him to stay, not atleast because we've given up interesting options which didn't reach the €100m clause.
"They weren't real offers, but there were contacts," he added.
Chelsea transfer news
As a result of missing out on Lukaku to rivals Manchester United, Conte has been forced to look at new targets including Belotti and Morata.
Real Madrid are demanding £79m for their Spanish striker, which is £9m less than Torino are demanding for the Italian prospect.
Belotti netted 26 times last season for the Serie-A side last term, making him the third highest score in the Italian league.
The Italian international joined Torino in 2015 for a £6m fee, scoring 12 league goals in his first campaign at Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino.
Andrea Belotti factfile
- Born December 20, 1993, in the small town of Calcinate in the northern province of Lombardy
- Earned his nickname Il Gallo (The Rooster) from a childhood friend who suggested he mimicked a rooster's comb on his forehead
- After an unsuccessful trial with Atalanta, joined AlbinoLeffe as a 13-year-old, eventually making his first-team debut in Serie B in 2011
- Moved on loan to Palermo in 2013, providing an assist to former Rangers and Norwich City striker Kyle Lafferty on his debut - helped Palermo to promotion in his first season but struggled for matches the next year
- Torino spent around £6m on him in August 2015. He scored 12 Serie A goals in his first season before his stunning 28-goal campaign last year
- Scored a seven minute hat-trick in January and also became the first player under 24 since Andriy Shevchenko in 2000 to score at least 24 Serie A goals
- Has been capped at U19, U20, U21 and senior level for Italy
Chelsea veteran Gianfranco Zola believes that the Torino forward should be the first choice, ahead of Morata.
Zola told : "To be honest, I was thinking Chelsea should go for Andrea Belotti in Italy.
"I thought that considering the type of qualities Costa has, that Belotti was the perfect fit.
"Morata is a little bit different, he's more of a finesse player. He hasn't got the presence of a player like Costa in the box. He's a different player, he brings other qualities," he added.
Keep up-to-date with all the latest transfer news and gossip in our live blog