Chelsea 'eye up £12m move for Serie A youngster and are 'pushing hard to seal deal this month' with Cesare Casadei set to return to Italy

Chelsea have lined up a move for a promising Moroccan talent as they look to replace the outgoing Cesar Casadei this month, according to reports.

Midfielder Casadei is expected to leave Stamford Bridge with several Serie A sides circling and Lazio have lodged an £11.5million bid, as revealed by Mail Sport.

Casadei has made just 17 appearances in total since joining for £12.6m from Inter Milan in 2023 and spent spells on loan at Reading and Leicester City.

But the Blues are keen to ensure they do not leave themselves short and Gianluca Di Marzio has claimed they are pushing hard to sign Hellas Verona’s Reda Belahyane.

The deal has progressed in recent days and is said to be worth €15m (£12.6m).

Belahyane has featured 20 times in Serie A this season and recorded two assists.

Enzo Maresca is short of options in midfield after injuries to several first-team regulars

The youngster has also earned one cap for the Moroccan national side.

He joined Verona for just €500,000 (£420,000) one year ago but after a series of eye-catching displays, Chelsea will be forced to splash out significantly more.

Casadei was left out of Chelsea’s squad ahead of their FA Cup victory over Morecambe, having been deemed surplus to requirements.

Boss Enzo Maresca said he did not want to jeopardise his prospects of a move.

‘For him [Casadei]probably in this moment, the idea is not to allow him to play some minutes in case there is any opportunity for him to go and play,’ Maresca said. ‘At this moment, this is the best thing for him.’

‘The only thing I can say is Cesare didn’t get minutes for us, not because he’s not good,’ he added. ‘He is a good player and in the middle we have [Moises] Caicedo, Enzo [Fernandez] and [Romeo] Lavia – for me, who are the same position.

‘Cesare has shown how good he can be in the Conference League, playing all the games as a No 6; physically strong and good in the air. He is a good player but we have already many good players in that position so he didn’t get the minutes.’

Maresca is short on options in central midfield after injuries to Enzo Fernandez and Romeo Lavia and as such, the club are likely to move to secure reinforcements.

Chelsea also enquired over a loan for Juventus’ Douglas Luiz but a deal appears unlikely

They are understood to have enquired over a loan for Juventus’ Douglas Luiz, formerly of Aston Villa, but the Italian heavyweights want a substantial fee.

A move is believed to be unlikely at this stage with the Blues unwilling to commit themselves to a hefty fee or an obligation to buy in the summer.

Mail Sport reported earlier this month that Manchester City were also among the Premier League clubs to have been offered Luiz.

The 26-year-old was previously on City’s books between 2017 and 2019 but failed to make a single appearance due to work permit issues.

Fulham, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United were also invited to make an offer.