Chelsea face £30m transfer loss in Romelu Lukaku repeat with club ‘in talks’

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Chelsea are reportedly in talks with Southampton over a deal to bring Tino Livramento back to Stamford Bridge, according to reports. The Blues, who spent over £97million to re-sign Romelu Lukaku from Inter Milan two summers ago, sold Livramento to the Saints for a modest fee of around £8m back in 2021.

The Croydon-born defender missed the vast majority of last season through injury but has shone for Southampton when fit and could be destined for a return to the Premier League after the club’s relegation to the Championship. Chelsea have already kickstarted talks with Southampton over a move for Livramento, according to the Daily Mail, which comes as a surprise given the existing right-back options already at their disposal.

Reece James and Malo Gusto would likely be ahead of Livramento in the pecking order at Stamford Bridge, while the Blues would also be looking at paying a transfer fee of around £38m in exchange for the 20-year-old’s signature. This would represent an increase of £30m on the sum paid by Southampton to land him two years ago, at which point he had never played senior football.

The Blues are thought to have a buy-back clause for Livramento, which would make things easier by allowing them to bypass negotiations at club level with the Saints. However, the fee required is said to be just below £40m and Chelsea would rather find a compromise at a lower price than shell out the full value of the clause.

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Chelsea would also be open to loaning Livramento back to Southampton for another season, meaning that he would not be able to play for them until the 2024/25 campaign. It remains to be seen whether the Blues will push forward with discussions over the coming weeks, with Newcastle also eager to land Livramento before the Premier League resumes next month.

Southampton have already turned down two formal bids from the Magpies, who reportedly offered £12m before submitting a renewed proposal worth around £21m last week. They are yet to revise their latest offer for Livramento, although it would not be a surprise to see Newcastle go back in for the defender with the aim of getting closer to Southampton’s valuation in the near future.

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Livramento excelled in his first year at St Mary’s but saw his debut season curtailed by a long-term injury, which kept him out of action for most of the following campaign. He went on to recover in time to play in Southampton’s last two Premier League fixtures against Brighton and Liverpool and will be expected to aid their promotion push if he stays at the club following their relegation to England’s second-tier.

There is seemingly a chance that Livramento could reject the idea of a move elsewhere this summer, with Nizaar Kinsella having reported that he is reluctant to leave Southampton as things stand. He is thought to value the idea of playing regular first-team football and would prefer to feature on a weekly basis for the Saints, which is a problem that could be solved by Chelsea loaning him back for one more season at the club.

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