West Ham and Bournemouth were said to be the two teams vying for the teenager’s signature but The Sun claim that the Blues have swooped in, with Enzo Maresca’s side “set to pay” up to £30m for the player.
There are still some obstacles to overcome before Kroupi finalises his move to Stamford Bridge this month.
The Sun report that both the player and his representative want him to feature in the Premier League straight away, which may be an issue.
Chelsea would probably prefer to sign Kroupi and loan him out to get first-team football so this transfer is not totally sealed quite yet.
The 18-year-old came through the youth ranks of Lorient before making his senior debut for the club’s B team against SO Romorantin in May 2022.
Just over a year later, Kroupi made his first appearance for the first team, coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 win over Strasbourg on the final day of the 2022/23 season.
The forward was already getting regular game time as a 17-year-old, making 11 starts in Ligue One last campaign before Lorient’s relegation. In Ligue Two this season, he has scored 9 times in 17 games.
The Blues have considered a move for Bayern Munich’s Mathys Tel but the club are believed to have cooled their interest, with Manchester United and Arsenal now the favourites for the Frenchman’s signature.
A move for Alejandro Garnacho could be revisited while there is said to be interest in both Ipswich’s Liam Delap and Borussia Dortmund’s Karim Adeyemi but the latter two deals may have to wait until the summer.
