Conte planning transfer raid on former club Chelsea amid contract standoff

Antonio Conte is planning to raid his former club Chelsea and snap up Andreas Christensen amid his contract wrangles.

Tottenham are desperate to bolster their squad with the Italian in charge but he could turn to a player he knows well.

The Blues are encountering something of a defensive crisis at the end of the season with four players out of contract.

Christensen is among them, while captain Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger could also be on the verge of leaving.

That could put Thomas Tuchel in a massive pickle while the vultures are already out looking to swoop in.

Included are Tottenham where Conte is keen on landing Christensen, whom he worked with at Chelsea during his two-year stint in charge.

According to the Daily Star, Spurs could land the Denmark international at a bargain rate amid his contract standoff at the club.

At the start of the season, the 25-year-old looked set to pen a new long-term deal and Chelsea were happy that negotiations had already been complete.

But his agent moved the goalposts later on, demanding that they change the contract length from five years to three years.

At the time of the renewed contract's expiration, that would make Christensen 28 and in his prime - thus being able to dictate terms further down the line.

It has left a sour taste in the Blues board's mouths and negotiations have stagnated, allowed a number of clubs to enter the race.

Tottenham are among a host of teams ready to pounce, including Barcelona, AC Milan, Manchester United and Manchester City.

However, the foreign clubs are able to strike first and speak to the player and his agent in January where formal talks are allowed.

Chelsea have not given up trying to tie Christensen, who joined the academy at 14 in 2012, to a new deal.

Tuchel would love the defender to stay, who is a specialist in the middle of a back three, but the contract impasse has clearly affected his form.

It has led to the Chelsea boss dropping the Dane to the bench while against Zenit Saint Petersburg he looked shaky in a 3-3 draw.

Tuchel said in November: "It is on Andreas to act. How he acts on the pitch, he needs to act off it and walk the talk because he tells us that he loves Chelsea.

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"He tells us that he wants to stay because he is a big part of a big club. I think he is a perfect fit and I think that he is not done here.

"His career here is, by far, not finished. But, like I said, it's on him. We want the commitment and hopefully we get it."