Before his season was disrupted by injury, Virgil van Dijk was having a brilliant campaign for Southampton.
Once he was ruled out, the Saints effectively resigned themselves to the fact that he has probably played his last game for the club.
The Dutchman is likely to for around the £50million mark this summer, with several top clubs having expressed an interest.
Ultimately, it’s looked for a while as if he was going to stay in the Premier League, with Manchester City and Chelsea the two clubs leading the race for his signature.
The Mirror report that that has now boiled down to one, and it’s Pep Guardiola who is going to be disappointed.
It’s being suggested that Antonio Conte sees Van Dijk as his number one target and is happy to make him the most expensive defender in British football history.
Southampton have already lost his centre-back partner Jose Fonte to West Ham, but that’s unlikely to make the difference when Chelsea quickly need a replacement for John Terry.
Check out Football Advisor for profitable betting predictions
