Chelsea transfer news: Pep Chavarria bid 'rejected' by Rayo Vallecano as Blues follow Granit Xhaka trend

Chelsea have reportedly failed with a €9m (£7.74m) offer for Rayo Vallecano defender Pep Chavarria.

The Blues are in the market for a new left-sided defender who fits a similar profile to Marc Cucurella, who has left for Real Madrid.

While Atalanta BC's Marco Palestra is expected to move to Stamford Bridge, the Italy international appears more likely to feature on the right than the left.

As a result, Chelsea have been heavily linked with Chavarria in recent days, the suggestion being that Xabi Alonso has specifically identified the player as someone he wants in his squad.

However, as per Mundo Deportivo and La Razon, Chelsea are yet to get anywhere meeting the Spaniard's valuation.

Chelsea yet to agree Chavarria fee

The reports alleges that Chelsea have, so far, only been willing to offer below £8m for a player who is one of the stars of Rayo Vallecano's team.

Although it is suggested that Chavarria has a €50m (£42.99m) release clause, the La Liga outfit are said to be ready to cash in for less than that figure.

Nevertheless, Chelsea's opening offer, which does not include add-ons, has been rejected.

At this point in time, the Premier League outfit are expected to return with a fresh proposal, yet they seemingly face competition from Villarreal.

Are Chelsea low-balling clubs or can they not afford to sign targets?

Over the weekend, it became apparent that Chelsea had only offered in the region of £8m for Granit Xhaka, a bid that was also shunned by Sunderland.

As with Chavarria, Chelsea are expected to return with an improved offer for the Switzerland international, but how much Chelsea can currently afford to spend should come into the debate.

On Tuesday, they were fined by UEFA for breaching their financial regulations. While UEFA emphasised that Chelsea's finances were on an upward trend, it was clear that they had again fallen foul of the rules.

If sales can be made later in the summer, Chelsea should be in a position to make further additions and submit bigger offers.

That said, if Chelsea believe that they can sign Chavarria and Xhaka for less than £20m in the current market, their current clubs are justified in turning down any such offers out of hand.