Edmond Tapsoba insists there is ‘nothing concrete’ in place for him to join Chelsea this summer and expects to still be a Bayer Leverkusen player when next season begins.
The 22-year-old has established himself as one of the finest young defenders in the Bundesliga since swapping Vitoria for Leverkusen back in January 2020 and his performances have not gone unnoticed among the Premier League’s elite.
Arsenal have reportedly placed Tapsoba on their shortlist of targets at centre-back and there have been rumours the north London club had an eye-watering opening offer of €60million (£51.4m) rejected for the Burkina Faso international last month.
German publication Sport Bild recently claimed Manchester United and Chelsea had joined the Gunners in the race for Tapsoba’s signature, with both clubs initiating talks over a possible summer deal.
However, it appears the sought-after centre-half remains committed to Leverkusen for the time being, with another five years remaining on his current contract at Bay Arena.
‘With Chelsea, for the moment, there is nothing concrete, nothing official,’ Tapsoba said as per Afrique Sports.
‘What I can say is that I will start my season with Bayer Leverkusen.
‘We keep our fingers crossed for God to guide us to the right path.’
Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes insisted Tapsoba had a key role to play for the forthcoming campaign when pressed on the mounting speculation surrounding the defender’s future.
‘Edmond should play a very important role for us next season,’ he told Bild last month.
Tapsoba has often been likened to Jerome Boateng since bursting onto the scene in Germany and the youngster revealed an unlikely admiration for Manchester City and England centre-back John Stones when he joined Leverkusen 18 months ago.
‘I was inspired by John Stones who was at Everton and now plays for Manchester City,’ he said.
‘Virgil van Dijk is one of the best defenders in the world but I like the way Stones plays so that’s what I take inspiration from.’
MORE : Maurizio Sarri admits he made a ‘huge mistake’ over Chelsea exit
MORE : ‘He is the answer’ – Emmanuel Petit urges Chelsea to beat rivals to Erling Haaland transfer