Leicester City 'to battle Chelsea for Gleison Bremer'

Leicester City have made their move to battle Chelsea for Torino's in-demand central defender Gleison Bremer, according to a report.

The Brazilian has been linked with a transfer to a host of European clubs in the upcoming summer transfer window, following an impressive campaign with the Turin side in Serie A.

Bremer has played in 33 of Torino's 36 league games during the 2021-22 campaign so far, where his side boast the division's fifth-best defensive record, which has helped them to 10th place at the time of writing.

Brendan Rodgers' Foxes have stepped up their interest in signing the defender this summer according to The Sun, with midfielder Dennis Praet set to be included in any potential deal for the £40m-rated Bremer.

The Belgian has made 21 Serie A appearances on loan with Torino so far this season, and with the club interested in signing the 27-year-old on a permanent basis, Leicester are willing to use him as makeweight in order to move ahead of Chelsea in the race for Bremer, with the Champions League holders also said to be interested.

According to the report, Leicester officials met with the hierarchy of Torino when they were in Italy for their Europa Conference League semi-final tie with Roma on Thursday, with the hope of agreeing the double deal.

Should Bremer make the move to the East Midlands side for the 2022-23 campaign, he would be competing with the likes of Caglar Soyuncu, Jonny Evans and Wesley Fofana for a starting spot in Rodgers' side, with the latter two having suffered an injury-hit season this year.