Benoît Badiashile has an uncertain future at Chelsea due to a lack of playing time this season. The 23-year-old has spent more minutes on the bench than on the pitch, as Enzo Maresca has preferred Levi Colwill and Wesley Fofana in defence.
Badiashile might be considering his options when the January transfer window opens, and reports suggest Juventus will be first in line to capitalise. According to Gazette Dello Sport, the Old Lady are interested in the French international, as they’re desperate to strengthen their backline.
Juventus do have their eye on a number of other targets – Radu Dragusin of Tottenham Hotspur, Joachim Andersen of Fulham, Jakub Kiwior of Arsenal, Milan Skriniar of Inter Milan, and David Hancko of Feyenoord. Badiashile might be the easiest to obtain as he’s out of favour in West London.
The 23-year-old made his first and only Premier League appearance of the season in mid-October, spending the preceding weeks as a substitute or out of the matchday squad entirely. Badiashile has been used in the League Cup and Conference League, which suggests Maresca doesn’t consider him indispensable.
In addition to Colwill and Fofana, Chelsea have Tosin Adarabioyo, Axel Disasi and Renato Veiga to choose from, so Badiashile has been all but frozen out. He might jump at the chance to leave Chelsea and could be keen on Juventus, but it remains to seen if he’s break into their starting eleven.
The Old Lady are unbeaten in Serie A this season and have the best defensive record, so would Badiashile stand a chance of immediately dethroning an existing first-teamer? It’s unlikely.
Chelsea have the centre-back tied down until 2030 too, so they don’t need to rush a move if they’re not happy with the price. They can play hardball to extract maximum value, but Juve and others would fairly argue that his current ‘unwanted’ role should bring the price down.
