Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic has praised young Croatian defender Josko Gvardiol amid transfer rumors linking him as a target for the Blues.
Kovacic is currently at the World Cup with Gvardiol as they play together for the Croatian national team, and it seems that he is a big fan of his compatriot.
The talented 20-year-old has impressed in his time in the Bundesliga with RB Leipzig, and is now heavily linked with big clubs such as Juventus, although Gazzetta dello Sport describes Chelsea as the leaders.
Graham Potter would surely relish the chance to sign a top-flight young centre-back in Gvardiol, and the club will likely soon need to think about a long-term successor to veteran Brazilian defender Thiago Silva.
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If the deal goes through, it looks like Kovacic would fully support it, making it clear that he rates the youngster highly.
“He’s phenomenal, he’s 20 years old and already fantastic. But I have no comment to make on the links with Chelsea,” Kovacic was quoted as saying by Tuttomercatoweb.
Kovacic will also meet Chelsea team-mate Romelu Lukaku when Croatia take on Belgium today, and he praised the loan-out striker, saying: “We played together with Romelu at Chelsea, he’s a great player and he’s been showing it. during years. He has scored many goals.”
