Chelsea have “little hope of persuading” Josko Gvardiol to make the move from RB Leipzig to Stamford Bridge this summer, according to 90min.com.

The website claims the Blues still have an interest in signing the Croatian international, having failed to land the defender last year, but the player is not interested in moving to a club that has no European football next season.

It is believed that Real Madrid and Manchester City are now the frontrunners for Gvardiol’s signature, with the Premier League champions reportedly looking to replace Aymeric Laporte.

Leipzig are expected to hold out for a massive fee to sell the centre-back. His release clause, which comes into effect next year, is set at €114m (£98m) and they will expect teams to pay close to that figure if they make an approach in the coming weeks.

Chelsea’s transfer priorities lie elsewhere

While Gvardiol was top of the club’s list of targets last summer, they have since recruited both Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile so there isn’t a massive need to sign another centre-back.

With Levi Colwill also returning from his loan spell at Brighton, manager Mauricio Pochettino could have as many as six centre-halves at his disposal, which is probably too many if he is thinking of using a back four.

Chelsea could snap up four players

The Blues need a new number one, a new number nine and, most likely, two holding midfield players, so reinforcing the defence is not on the agenda.

In terms of goalkeepers, AC Milan’s Mike Maignan and Inter Milan’s Andre Onana appear to be the favourite candidates at the moment. Victor Osimhen and Dusan Vlahovic are the two strikers likeliest to be targeted, while Brighton’s Moises Caicedo and Southampton’s Romeo Lavia seem to be the main options for strengthening in the middle of the pitch.