RB Leipzig CEO Oliver Mintzlaff has cooled speculation linking Josko Gvardiol with a €90m (£77.6m) move to Chelsea.

The Blues were said to be in advanced negotiations to sign the Croatian international, with a deal being negotiated so that the defender would make the switch to Stamford Bridge at the end of the season. However, Mintzlaff has dismissed those reports:

“Josko is a great player who will certainly arouse a lot of interest – he still has a contract with us until 2026. We assume that he will not only play with us this season, but also next season.”

After bringing in both Wesley Fofana and Kalidou Koulibaly this summer, it was somewhat of a surprise when the news broke about Gvardiol on Tuesday evening.

The defence has now been reinforced sufficiently following the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, and there are plenty of promising centre-backs (such as Levi Colwill) coming through the ranks.

Shelling out so much on Gvardiol would, therefore, not make a lot of sense. Mintzlaff’s remarks look pretty definitive but we will keep you up to date if there are any further developments on this transfer story.