Atalanta are leading the race to sign Saint Etienne midfielder Lucas Gourna-Douath, according to Tuttomercatoweb.com.

Reports in France had suggested that the 17-year-old would snub approaches from Chelsea, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund to stay at Saint-Etienne for another year but TMW claim a move to Italy is a possibility.

The Italian website say that Atalanta have the “advantage” over their rivals for Gourna-Douath’s signature and they are readying their “first offer” which is said to be worth around €10m (£8.5m).

Whether such a bid would be accepted, it seems questionable. When Gourna-Douath was first linked with a switch to Stamford Bridge back in April, it was reported that Saint-Etienne would want at least €25m (£21.3m).

Atalanta may be looking to take advantage of the fact that Ligue One teams are currently in financial difficulty following the collapse of a TV deal, but, even so, it would be a shock if their opening offer was accepted.