Chelsea risk missing out on Ajax left-back Nicolas Tagliafico with Atletico Madrid circling for his signature, claims The Sun.
Tagliafico is tipped as the latest big name player to leave Ajax this summer following another exceptional campaign for the Dutch giants.
The Argentina international has been earmarked as potential transfer target by Chelsea as an alternative to Leicester's Ben Chilwell.
Frank Lampard deems Chilwell a significant upgrade on his current options at left-back but accepts a deal may prove complex if Leicester secure Champions League football for next season.
Leicester would be reluctant to accept anything less than £50m for the England international and that may prove out of reach for Chelsea, who still want to strengthen elsewhere.
It's why Tagliafico may emerge as Chelsea's main transfer target given his availability at a significantly cheaper fee of £24.5m.
However, Chelsea now face competition from Atletico, who are also in the market for a new left-back this summer following Renan Lodi's struggles.
Tagliafico has been a consistent performer for Ajax over the past two years, playing a direct hand in 13 goals in 53 league games during that period.
Not only capable of posing a threat going forward, the 27-year-old is also a solid defender, illustrated by the fact he ranks fifth for most tackles and interceptions combined over the last two Eredivisie campaigns (231).
