Report: Chelsea nearing move for Real Madrid's Danilo

With Chelsea's efforts to pry Alex Sandro from Juventus' grip hitting a snag, the Premier League holder has reportedly turned its attention to Real Madrid full-back Danilo.

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is understood to be targetting Danilo to compete with Victor Moses at right wing-back, with the Evening Standard's Simon Johnson suggesting the Blues are close to finalising the move.

Danilo, 26, is on Real's books through 2021, and despite a penchant for playing in either full-back position, he made just 17 La Liga appearances for Los Blancos last season as Zinedine Zidane opts for first-choice pairing Marcelo and Dani Carvajal.

From Chelsea's perspective, adding Danilo to the squad makes heaps of sense, especially as Conte continues to prefer a 3-4-2-1 formation with Moses on the right side. On paper, Moses appears as a weak link in a stacked squad littered with footballing elite.

Conte's last competitive memory of Moses was a horrendous FA Cup final performance in defeat against Arsenal where the Nigerian international was shown a second yellow for diving, and after the match, the impassioned Italian gaffer was asked about squad additions.

"Next season, we must pay great attention to understand that we have to improve in terms of squad numbers and also in quality," Conte admitted. "We must be very cold to analyze the situation."

Juventus was also reportedly monitoring Danilo as a potential Alex Sandro replacement, though Leonardo Bonucci's move to AC Milan means the six-time consecutive Serie A winner is no longer willing to sell a defensive mainstay.