"He was in Rome at the time" - Chelsea legend claims Blues tried to sign Francesco Totti during his time with the London club
Former Chelsea skipper Marcel Desailly has revealed that they attempted to sign Roma legend Francesco Totti, but the offer didn't materialize.
Francesco Totti is one of the greatest football players to ever represent Giallorossi and was adorned by the fans for his loyalty to Roma. Roman Abramovich became the Chelsea chairman in 2003, and one of the first football stars he wanted to sign during his tenure was Totti.
Marcel Desailly, meanwhile, joined the Blues in 1998 after he won the FIFA World Cup with France. The former French defender stated that Abramovich's first choice was Zinedine Zidane, but the possibility of signing the Frenchman was ruled out after he was doing well at Real Madrid.
"I was captain at Chelsea when Abramovich took over at Chelsea, he was not speaking English so he had a translator. He bought a lot of players to the club. But Zidane was fine in Madrid, he was not at his peak in 2003 and 2004. We never had a discussion over Zidane."
Hence, in desperate need of an experienced attacking midfielder, the Blues shifted their focus to Francesco Totti. However, Seria A was arguably the top league in Europe at that time. Hence, Totti also didn't have a reason to leave Roma and join Stamford Bridge.
"Francesco Totti at the time was wanted by Chelsea. He was in Rome at the time. Stamford Bridge would have loved Zidane, but when you have to go and play at Sunderland and Everton, it was not going to be sexy! It was not for him at the time." said Desailly while speaking to BoyleSports.
'Il Capitano' stayed at Roma for 24 years and announced his retirement from the beautiful game in 2017. Consequently, winning the 2006 World Cup with Italy was one of the biggest highlights of his professional career.
Chelsea completes the signing of Romeo Lavia
This summer transfer window has been extremely eventful for the Blues and Liverpool, as both sides indulged in a player-signing battle. Jurgen Klopp's side tried hijacking the deals of Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo, but they failed at both junctures.
The west London side had already announced Moises Caicedo's signing last week. Consequently, they recently completed the deal for former Southampton star Romeo Lavia for €53 million plus €5 million in add-ons.
The 19-year-old will be joining Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo at Stamford Bridge. Mauricio Pochettino's men will next lock horns against West Ham United at the London Stadium on August 20.