Denzel Dumfries considers links with Chelsea to be a “compliment”, but claims to be paying little attention to transfer talk during the 2022 World Cup

Full-back catching the eye in QatarCurrently plays club football for InterBeing linked with Premier League sides

WHAT HAPPENED? The buccaneering right-back is once again attracting admiring glances for his performances on an international stage, having previously earned a move to Serie A giants Inter on the back of eye-catching outings at Euro 2020. Premier League heavyweights are said to have Dumfries in their sights, with Manchester United another of his reported suitors, but the 26-year-old is fully focused on a bid for major honours having helped to fire his country into the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

WHAT THEY SAID: Dumfries has told The Athletic when asked about Chelsea’s supposed interest in securing his services: “Of course it’s a compliment. But when you put the Nerazzurri shirt on that is also a big compliment. I’m focused on the national team and I play for a very, very beautiful club in Italy. I’m very proud that I can play for Inter so I am focused on nothing else but the national team and Inter.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The highly-rated defender penned a long-term contract when moving to San Siro in the summer of 2021, with those terms set to take him through to the end of the 2024-25 season.

IN TWO PHOTOS:

WHAT NEXT? Any deal for Dumfries would not come cheap, as his stock continues to rise, and he will be hoping to raise his price tag even further when facing Lionel Messi and Argentina in a World Cup quarter-final on Friday.