Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has expressed an interest in Manchester United full-back Matteo Darmian, according to Italian media outlet Passione Inter.
The Blues boss is seeking defensive reinforcements after seeing his side concede seven goals in their three matches prior to the win at Hull City last weekend.
And it appears that the former Juventus manager has turned his attentions to United outcast Darmian, with whom he worked with the Italian national team during his stint in charge between 2014 and 2016.
26-year-old Darmian moved to Old Trafford last summer and was a regular in his first season under then-manager Louis van Gaal, although Jose Mourinho’s arrival appears to have all but ended his United career.
He’s appeared just once this term – a 1-0 defeat to Feyenoord in the Europa League – and wasn’t in the match-day squad for their other European encounter against Zorya Luhansk last week.
Darmian has been attracting interest from Italian outfit Inter Milan over the past few weeks, but the club have been unable to scout the full-back due to his lack of playing time at Old Trafford.
The report suggests that Inter do not want to enter a bidding war with Chelsea for the defender, which may leave the door open for Conte to get his man when the transfer window reopens in January.
