Chelsea's chase for £90m Kai Havertz intensifies - Paper Round

Chelsea are planning to "step up" their hunt for Kai Havertz after Bayer Leverkusen play their final match of the season in the DFB Pokal final against Bayern Munich on Saturday. According to the Telegraph, Chelsea will battle with Bayern and Real Madrid for the German wonderkid's signature. The report states that Havertz "remains near the top" of the west London club's wishlist as Frank Lampard looks to strengthen his squad's attack. Leverkusen value Havertz at £90 million but Chelsea believe they will be able to negotiate a lower asking price, if they qualify for the Champions League next season.

Paper Round's view: Chelsea really mean business this summer. They've completed the signings of Hakim Ziyech from Ajax and Timo Werner from RB Leipzig and now they're chasing Kai Havertz. The club has also been linked with England duo Declan Rice and Ben Chilwell as Lampard looks to address the defensive problems in his team. Signing Havertz would be a real statement because it would mean beating the likes of Bayern and Real Madrid to his signature. It's odd that Chelsea plan to ramp up their pursuit after the DFB Pokal final when it would make more sense to make a move once the Blues have secured top four. Since Leverkusen failed to qualify for Europe's elite competition next campaign, Chelsea could use it as bait to bring Havertz to Stamford Bridge.

Borussia Dortmund believe they have beaten Manchester United to the signing of teen sensation Jude Bellingham, according to the Sun. The 17-year-old has been involved in a transfer tussle between the two sides since January but the Bundesliga club are now confident that Bellingham will sign a five-year deal at Dortmund. Lucien Favre's side will pay an initial £20.7 million fee for the Birmingham City youngster. This will be the second time in 2020 that United lose out to the German outfit, after Erling Haaland picked Dortmund back in the winter window.

Paper Round's view: Another young English prodigy is heading to the Bundesliga. There's no doubt that Bellingham's decision to join Dortmund was influenced by the major success of Jadon Sancho, who left Manchester City for the German club back in 2017. Sancho was given first-team opportunities in his debut season in Germany and Bellingham probably believes that he can mirror Sancho. The 17-year-old will hope to flourish abroad and his entourage probably agreed that Dortmund would probably be better for his development in comparison to Manchester United. A potential move to one of England's biggest clubs isn't off the table. Bellingham has got plenty of years left in his career.

The Independent dive into Liverpool's plan to dominate English football after winning their first Premier League title. The piece looks at how back in February, Liverpool chiefs had already outlined "how they would evolve from chasers to being chased". The trio of manager Jurgen Klopp, sporting director Michael Edwards and Fenway Sports Group president Mike Gordon discussed how the club would defend their title in the 2020-21 season and avoid a situation like Manchester City's "significant drop off" in the current campaign. The main ideas are tying players down to long-term contracts and to start blooding the next generation of youngsters. In addition, the Liverpool chiefs seemed confident that, unlike City, their team still has plenty of years in its peak.

Paper Round's view: It's always viewed that defending a league title is much tougher than winning the first. Over the past decade, Pep Guardiola's City side of 2018-19 are the only team to successfully defend their Premier League title - and even then, their drop off this season has been stark. At the moment it looks like Liverpool should expect challenges from City, Manchester United and Chelsea next season - as United have finally found their form under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Chelsea are willing to spend to improve. Liverpool have absolutely dominated the Premier League this season, so we can expect City to come back even hungrier next term.

Manchester United are ready to send centre-back Eric Bailly out on loan next season, according to the Sun. The 26-year-old has slipped down the pecking order since his arrival at Old Trafford back in 2016. United recently spent around £85 million on club captain Harry Maguire and the Red Devils are reportedly interested in signing another central defender this summer. The Manchester outfit are prepared to loan out Bailly - who is currently earning £150,000 a week - but would still be willing to sell the Ivorian international if an offer came in that matched the £30 million fee they paid Villarreal for his services four years ago. A return to La Liga could be on the cards, with the Sun revealing Valencia's interest in taking Bailly on a season-long loan for the 2020-21 campaign.

Paper Round's view: When you take a look at United's squad - it's baffling at how bloated they are in central defence. Maguire and Victor Lindelof have been first choice this season in the heart of defence, with left-back Luke Shaw used as a left-sided centre-back when operating with a back three. United then have Bailly, Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo, Axel Tuanzebe and Chris Smalling - who is on loan at AS Roma. This highlights the poor recruitment at the club since Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill departed the club back in 2013. It's shocking that Bailly has stayed at the club earning £150,000 a week and barely played any matches. United need to be more proactive in addressing this issue and will have to shift some of these players this summer.