Chelsea plan contract talks with defender in January

Chelsea will sit down with Andreas Christensen and discuss a new contract at the start of next year, reports the London Evening Standard. 

Christensen has emerged as a key player for Antonio Conte in the last few months after moving about David Luiz in the pecking order. 

The Denmark international’s performances have been so impressive that Conte is now prepared to sell Luiz in January and the defending Premier League champions want to secure Christensen’s long-term future as soon as possible. 

There were doubts whether Christensen would ever make it at Chelsea despite establishing himself as one of the best defenders in Germany during a two-year loan stint at Gladbach. 

Chelsea’s reluctance to use their academy under previous managers appeared to jeopardise his future at Stamford Bridge but the 21-year-old is now considered a first-team regular for the Blues. 

Christensen’s current deal is due to expire in 2020 but Chelsea want to extend his stay well beyond that as they look to secure his long-term future before the end of the season. 

The youngster has now started 11 Premier League games this season and his pass success rate has only dipped below 90% on three occasions.

Not only that, but Christensen has gone through entire league matches without misplacing a single pass three times this season - he is the only Premier League player (excluding substitute appearances) to achieve that on more than one occasion this season.