Bournemouth Desperate for Chelsea's Acheampong in £34.6M Defensive Overhaul

BOURNEMOUTH are scrambling to rebuild their defence and have made two desperate moves to land Chelsea starlet Josh Acheampong, SunSport can exclusively reveal.

The Cherries are reeling after losing three key defenders in a summer clear-out that’s seen Illia Zabarnyi snapped up by PSG in a £57MILLION mega deal, Dean Huijsen pinched by Real Madrid and flying full-back Milos Kerkez poached by Liverpool .

3 Not many players are untouchable at Chelsea this summer but Acheampoing is one they don't want to lose Credit: Getty

3 People in the England setup are already tipping him for a bright future Credit: Getty

3 He came through the Chelsea academy and has made a big impact on the first team already Credit: Getty

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It’s left boss Andoni Iraola facing a full-blown defensive crisis just weeks before the new season and the Spaniard has made versatile Chelsea youngster Acheampong his top priority.

The South Coast side have already splashed £34.6MILLION this week on Bafode Diakite from Lille but insiders say they are desperate to get a deal for Acheampong over the line.

However, Chelsea are playing hardball and will only sanction a loan for the highly-rated 19-year-old, who they see as the " next Levi Colwill ."

Acheampong’s ability to play both at centre-back and full-back has made him one of the most sought-after defensive prospects in England , with Blues bosses keen to repeat the Colwill formula,  loaning him out for experience before integrating him as a first-team regular.

Colwill played under Roberto de Zerbi at Brighton where he cut his teeth as a Premier League star and proved he was more than capable for the task at Chelsea.

But Bournemouth want a permanent deal and are hoping to twist Chelsea’s arm for a sale before the window slams shut.

A club source told SunSport: “We have held talks and made our intensions very clear but it's a bit difficult at the moment because Chelsea just want to do a dry loan because obviously they don't want to lose him.

“Hopefully their stance might change in the coming weeks as we get closer to the end of the transfer window.’

With less than three weeks to go in the transfer window, the ball is firmly in Chelsea’s court .

The Blues are also still looking to add to their squad with strong links to Manchester United's Alejandro Garnacho and RB Leipzig 's Xavi Simons.

Chelsea have proved their model of buying young players and handing them long-term contracts can work having won the Europa Conference League and the Club World Cup .

They are hoping that the tweaks this summer will be enough to mount a Premier League challenge and dominate domestic football for a long time.