It is no secret that Chelsea could do with some more quality in the heart of their defence. They have a lot of centre-backs on paper, but a lot of them are injury-prone. That tag certainly fits both Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile. They have barely featured since joining the club, despite their undeniable potential, as neither can seem to find a way to remain fit for any consistent length of time. On the other hand, Levi Colwill is out with an ACL injury.
Trevoh Chalobah and Tosin Adarabioyo just don't seem good enough to be starting options for Chelsea. And while Josh Acheampong has shown a lot of promise, he is still a teenager and it is clear that Enzo Maresca does not completely trust him to be a regular starter just yet.
One of the centre-backs they have been linked with in recent times is Eric Garcia. His current contract with Barcelona runs out at the end of this season.
As reported by Fichajes, Barcelona's board had been negotiating Garcia's continued presence at the club for weeks, aware that English clubs were planning a summer push for him. His contract extension until 2030 is already in the works, according to internal club sources.
Barcelona make Eric Garcia exit decision amid Chelsea interest
So, it looks like Barcelona are keen to keep Garcia at the club. Although things have not always been smooth for him at Camp Nou, he is getting consistent opportunities right now.
For Chelsea, that is not good news. That being said, many fans were not convinced that Garcia was the answer to their problems.
In many ways, Garcia might have only added to the problem for Chelsea. They have a lot of decent centre-backs but not any world-class ones. That is the level they should be targeting if they want to take the next step.