Chelsea could finally sign Aurelien Tchouameni after missing out on the midfielder nearly four-years ago. The Real Madrid ace was heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge during the summer of 2021 after he burst onto the scene at AS Monaco.

During his first full season with the French outfit in 2020/21, he featured 36 times in Ligue 1, scoring two goals and providing four assists. Playing a crucial role in Niko Kovac's side, alongside Axel Disasi and Benoit Badiashile, Tchouameni helped Monaco finish third.

The defensive midfielder's impressive performances didn't go under the radar, attracting interest from Chelsea. Despite catching Thomas Tuchel's attention, The Athletic claim the Blues decided against signing Tchouameni because they felt as if he could have done with another 12 months of development.

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The Frenchman stayed at Monaco for another year before earning a move to Real Madrid in 2022. In fact, football.london understood at the time that no club had spent longer pursuing Tchouameni than Chelsea, who later missed the chance to secure his signature.

In March 2022, just months before the summer transfer window would open, the UK Government decided to sanction Roman Abramovich, forcing the West London outfit to operate under a special sporting licence that restricted them from signing any players for a short period.

Chelsea missed the boat and Real Madrid signed Tchouameni from Monaco for an initial €80m euros (£68.3m), plus about €20m (£17m) in add-ons, tying him down to a six-year contract. Two-and-a-half years on and the Blues could finally welcome the Frenchman to Stamford Bridge.

According to South American outlet DSports, Real Madrid are planning to 'go all out' to sign Enzo Fernandez from the Blues. After a rocky start to life in West London following a £106m move from Benfica in January 2023, the 24-year-old midfielder has impressed lately.

The report states that the Spanish giants are hoping to negotiate a straight swap deal for Tchouameni without any additional funds included from either party. It's said that the former Chelsea target has been left unsatisfied with his role in Carlo Ancelotti's side.

While he's regularly featured for Los Blancos this season, he's often been utilised at centre-back, with Eder Militao and David Alaba sidelined due to injury. That said, the latter of the two has recently returned to action, casting doubt over Tchouameni's future.

Speaking to reporters in June 2022 when he was unveiled as a Real Madrid player, the Frenchman revealed that his heart was always set on a move to the Santiago Bernabeu. Tchouameni said: "Kylian [Mbappe] stayed at Paris Saint-Germain.

"He knew that I was going to go from Monaco at the end of the season and he wanted to see if maybe I would go to PSG. But my first decision was always Real Madrid, and he respects that."

Tchouameni added: "I had the chance to choose other teams but when I found out that Real Madrid were interested in me, I didn’t doubt for a second. I want to leave my mark on football history and I think Madrid is the best place to do that: the biggest club in the world, with incredible players and the best club for me.

"I spoke to other clubs but a part of my head was always waiting for the call from Madrid and when they came to my door, I didn’t hesitate. I spoke to my agent, my family and the club [Monaco] to try to get the best deal for everyone."

Then, on Real Madrid winning the Champions League in 2021/22 – a run which saw Los Blancos defeat Chelsea in the quarter-finals – Tchouameni said: "When I was watching the final against Liverpool there were already negotiations with Madrid and other teams.

"But it is true that when I saw [what happened against] PSG, Chelsea, [Manchester] City, I was messaging people saying: ‘Please do all you can to take me to Madrid. I can’t not go there.’"