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    Chelsea ‘offered two stars to AC Milan in bid to land Rafael Leao in stunning swap transfer’

    CHELSEA offered AC Milan both Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic during their pursuit of Rafael Leao, according to reports.The Portuguese winger looks set to pen a new five-year contract at the San Siro after the Blues attempted to lure him away last summer.
    Rafael Leao was the subject of interest from ChelseaCredit: Reuters
    Chelsea offered AC Milan Christian Pulisic (left) and Hakim Ziyech (right) as part of the dealCredit: EPA
    Chelsea chiefs Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali initially valued the player at £87million.
    The Athletic report that in negotiations they offered both Ziyech and Pulisic separately to AC Milan to sweeten the deal.
    However, the Serie A giants would not budge despite Chelsea’s valuation of their two stars declining in an attempt to secure Leao’s signature.
    Milan held firm and demanded that they pay his £130million buyout clause.
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    Chelsea went back in for him in January with Leao’s contract then set to expire in 2024.
    But again their enquiry was turned down by Milan.
    The West Londoners supposedly even still considered the move after the signing of Mykhailo Mudryk, as they believed Leao could play as a striker.
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    Chelsea will now have to move on from him as his new big money contract contains a £152million release clause.
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    Leao was Serie A’s player of the season last term as he helped them win the league.
    And this year his 13 goals and 13 assists have fired Milan to a Champions League semi-final.
    Meanwhile, Ziyech and Pulisic have struggled for game time, having started just nine and ten games respectively this campaign. More

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    Pochettino needs ‘a miracle’ to keep Mason Mount at Chelsea with relations at all-time low as Arsenal eye £60m transfer

    MAURICIO POCHETTINO faces a massive uphill battle to keep Mason Mount at Chelsea.The incoming boss has targeted the £60million-rated midfielder’s contract stand-off as one of his main priorities when he takes over at the end of this season.
    Incoming Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino will need a “miracle” to keep Mason MountCredit: Getty
    But SunSport understands Pochettino’s arrival is coming too late to save negotiations and one of Chelsea’s most popular players looks set to leave his boyhood club after 18 years.
    Mount, 24, has barely a year left on his deal and talks are at loggerheads after ten months.
    SunSport can reveal Mount was offered a one-year extension by Chelsea in February but this was flatly rejected and seen as a ploy simply to raise his transfer fee.
    Relations between the player’s representatives and the club are at an all-time low and Pochettino needs a “miracle” to turn it round.
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    A Blues source said: “It feels like it is too late now for Mason.
    “Pochettino is good but he can’t work miracles.
    “If he had been brought in when Chelsea sacked Thomas Tuchel in September then maybe it would be a different story.
    “But in ten months there hasn’t been any resolution and other clubs want him. Good luck to Poch and Mason but we’re not hopeful.”
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    Mount is injured but eyeing a return for the final two games this season — at Manchester United then home to Newcastle on May 28.
    That could well be the end of the England star’s Blues journey, which started when he was six.
    Premier League rivals Liverpool and Arsenal have been strongly linked with interest in Mount.
    And Chelsea will sell if he does not sign a new deal as they do not want him leaving for free at the end of next season.
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    Mount is being targeted by Arsenal with Chelsea relations at all-time lowCredit: Getty
    Poch has agreed to take over from caretaker boss Frank Lampard but will wait until next month to officially take the reins.
    Former Tottenham chief Pochettino had an interview when Tuchel was axed in September but chairman Todd Boehly opted for Graham Potter.
    Potter was dismissed in April and Lampard came in.
    Poch is seen as one of the best in the business but wants a big say in matters and will have to oversee a mass clearout to balance the books. More

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    Thiago Silva breaks silence on Chelsea transfer exit rumours and reveals two reasons why he COULD leave this summer

    CHELSEA star Thiago Silva has broken his silence on rumours linking him with a transfer away and revealed two reasons why he could leave.The 38-year-old signed a new one-year deal in February but reports have suggested that he has grown frustrated at the current situation at the Blues.
    Thiago Silva has stressed he will stay at Chelsea if the club still want himCredit: Alamy
    Silva has been linked with an emotional return to his former club Fluminense in his homeland of Brazil.
    But in an interview with ESPN, the veteran has suggested he will stay at Stamford Bridge.
    He said: “I have a contract here, right? It’s strange, because several things have come out and fans become very passionate.
    “It’s even boring for me. It’s been only two months since I renewed with Chelsea, if I’m not mistaken, and I’ve always fulfilled my contracts.”
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    The centre-back that outlined the only two reasons why he would move on this summer, saying: “I only won’t stay here if Chelsea decide they don’t want me for next season.
    “Or if the new coach arrives and doesn’t want me to stay.
    “I intend to fulfil the contract that I signed until next year and then, next year, we’ll see what happens.”
    On Fluminense, Silva said: “I’ve always followed them since I left, I’ve always stayed very close. Every time I’m on vacation I go there, I do my training there. I have several friends there.
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    “There are many messages getting sent, saying ‘come back soon’. There is great anxiety from them, especially when things are coming out in the press, some untruths.
    “I even said to my wife, ‘I don’t know what meeting they’re talking about claiming I’m close to a return’, there’s nothing.
    “After another year, there would certainly be a desire to return.”
    Silva’s outspoken wife Belle also confirmed the player is hoping to still be at the club next season.
    She said: “We, my family, my husband, children and me are very happy here in London, in Chelsea.
    “So my family and I are blue and we are Chelsea and we are staying. Go Blues.”
    Silva has played 80 times in his career for Fluminense. More

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    Pochettino already in talks with Chelsea over transfer targets with FIVE names discussed including Osimhen alternative

    MAURICIO POCHETTINO has already identified FIVE transfer targets for Chelsea in the summer window, according to reports.The Argentine coach, 51, has agreed to take over at Stamford Bridge in June after one year out of football.
    Mauricio Pochettino has agreed to take over at Stamford BridgeCredit: Getty
    Victor Osimhen is a Chelsea target but is also being monitored by Manchester UnitedCredit: Rex
    Pochettino was sacked by Paris Saint-Germain at the end of last season.
    And while he has been linked with a move to Manchester United and return to Tottenham, he finally appears to have landed in West London.
    The ex-Spurs boss has reportedly compiled his transfer wishlist as he prepares to do business in the summer.
    According to The Mail, Argentina striker Lautaro Martinez is Pochettino’s No1 option when it comes to bringing in a centre-forward.
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    Lautaro Martinez is being monitoredCredit: Getty
    Emi Martinez is another Pochettino transfer targetCredit: PA
    The Inter Milan star, 25, is seen as an alternative to Napoli’s Victor Osimhen – who is also on Chelsea’s radar but is the subject of much interest from Manchester United.
    Another compatriot Pochettino is eyeing up is Aston Villa keeper Emi Martinez.
    The 30-year-old World Cup winner has been mooted as a possible signing for Spurs, but Chelsea could look to hijack the deal and establish him as their No1 ahead of Kepa Arrizabalaga and Edouard Mendy.
    West Ham captain Declan Rice is another target of Pochettino’s as he looks set to leave the London Stadium at the end of the season.
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    The England midfielder, 24, is receiving interest from Arsenal and Manchester United, but Chelsea are aware he was a boyhood Blues fan.
    And Brighton’s Alexis Mac Allister is the fifth and final man on Pochettino’s hitlist.
    His agent has confirmed he will depart Brighton in the summer, with Liverpool another potential destination.
    They may have to break the bank however, with the Seagulls reportedly looking for around £70m for the World Cup winner.
    Declan Rice has a number of Premier League clubs pursuing himCredit: Rex
    Alexis Mac Allister is set to leave Brighton at the end of the seasonCredit: Getty More

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    Mauricio Pochettino agrees terms with Chelsea as ex-Spurs boss to be officially announced by Todd Boehly in coming days

    CHELSEA will confirm Mauricio Pochettino as their new head coach this week.Blues bosses believe the former Tottenham boss can turn the club around after a disastrous first season for the new regime.
    Maurico Pochettino is on the verge of taking charge of ChelseaCredit: AP
    Chelsea are set to announce the Argentine as their new manager next weekCredit: PA
    A verbal agreement was struck with the Pochettino at the end of last month, and now the Blues have now officially agreed terms with the Argentine.
    Pochettino, 51, had been out of work since leaving Paris Saint-Germain last summer.
    He is one of the most successful and popular managers in recent times at Spurs, Chelsea’s bitter London rivals, despite failing to win a trophy with the club.
    He averaged 1.89 points per game – the most for any Tottenham boss in Premier League history with a minimum of 38 Prem games in charge.
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    The ex-Southampton chief capped off his five-year stint at White Hart Lane by leading Spurs to the 2019 Champions League final, where they lost to Liverpool.
    But he was sacked just months later following a poor start to the next campaign before eventually taking over at PSG in January 2021, winning the Coupe de France and Ligue 1 prior to his departure.
    Many Spurs fans wanted a return to North London for Pochettino after the club’s struggles since his departure in 2019.
    His old club are still working through a shortlist that no longer includes Julian Nagelsmann.
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    Mauricio Pochettino has managed four clubs
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    Tottenham are thought to be looking at Feyenoord’s Arne Slot, ex-Spain manager Luis Enrique, Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi and Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso.
    Pochettino will become Chelsea owner Todd Boehly’s fifth boss since taking over at Stamford Bridge last year.
    Graham Potter was sacked in April despite being hired on a five-year deal worth £12m-a-year.
    He was appointed after Boehly sacked Champions League-winning manager Thomas Tuchel following a poor start to the season.
    Potter won seven of his 22 Premier League matches in charge of the club, drew seven and lost eight.
    Chelsea are in a mess after Boehly splashed out £330m on new signings in January, taking their total spending this season well clear of £600m.
    Chelsea owner Todd Boehly (right) is about to appoint his fifth manager in under a year with the BluesCredit: Getty
    Interim boss Frank Lampard is desperately trying to steady the ship having lost six and winning just one of his eight games in his second spell in charge of the club.
    While Spaniard Bruno Saltor filled in for one game before Lampard’s return.
    The Blues’ dire season was summed up on Saturday when they were held to a 2-2 draw by relegation battlers Nottingham Forest.
    Pochettino’s summer will be spent rooting out the deadwood at Stamford Bridge and bringing in the players he’s earmarked for his West London revolution.
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    And he will likely be backed to the hilt by spend-happy Boehly – who has visions of restoring a Blues dynasty.
    Chelsea will be back in action a week on Sunday, travelling to the Etihad to take on defending Premier League champions Manchester City. More

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    Frank Lampard explains N’Golo Kante’s omission from Chelsea team to face Nottingham Forest leaving fans worried

    CHELSEA interim manager Frank Lampard revealed N’Golo Kante was omitted from his squad against Nottingham Forest due to a groin issue.The Blues take on Forest at Stamford Bridge in a crucial Premier League clash hoping to build on last week’s rare win at Bournemouth.
    Chelsea boss Frank Lampard revealed why he didn’t include N’Golo KanteCredit: Reuters
    Chelsea star Kante has been omitted against Nottingham Forest due to a groin issueCredit: Getty
    This marked Lampard’s first victory as caretaker boss during a poor second stint with the club as he lost all of his first six matches with the West Londoners.
    But the 44-year-old tactician is currently dealing with a major absence against Nottingham as he is without Kante.
    Chelsea’s record goalscorer revealed the midfielder sustained an injury during training on Friday.
    And the ex-Everton boss suggested the France international will be sidelined for two weeks.
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    Lampard said during his pre-match interview: “We lost N’Golo in training yesterday.
    “He felt something in his groin, so that’s probably a couple of weeks and we know what that means pretty much.”
    This adds to Kante’s injury woes this season, which have led to Chelsea being deprived of his services throughout most of the campaign.
    The 32-year-old sustained a hamstring injury during pre-season and was out until April.
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    The ex-Leicester star returned to action on April 1 against Aston Villa and went on to produce some fine displays.
    But it seems like Chelsea will have to make do without him as they approach the season finale.
    Lampard’s men are currently 12th in the Premier League table amid a turbulent campaign that has seen them change four managers. More

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    Man Utd battling City for Kovacic with Chelsea resigned to losing star in summer transfer

    MATEO KOVACIC is “likely” to leave Chelsea at the end of the season, according to reports.The Croatian midfielder, 29, is set to enter the final year of his contract this summer.
    Mateo Kovacic, right, will enter the final year of his Chelsea contract this summerCredit: Alamy
    There is no sign an agreement will be reached to extend his deal beyond 2024.
    And new Blues owner Todd Boehly is keen to avoid players entering the final 12 months of their deals for fear of them departing on free transfers.
    Chelsea, who will not be in the Champions League next season, are also wanting to decrease the size of their squad following a £600million spending spree over the past two windows.
    A host of midfield options – N’Golo Kante, Enzo Fernandez, Conor Gallagher, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Mason Mount and Carney Chukwuemeka – means Chelsea can afford to offload Kovacic.
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    According to The Guardian, Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Manchester United are all interested in the former Real Madrid man.
    A move to Bayern is perhaps the most logical destination for Kovacic given he would reunite with Thomas Tuchel – who he won the Champions League under at Chelsea in 2021.
    But Man Utd will also be fighting for his signature as they seek world-class midfielders to go alongside Christian Eriksen and Casemiro.
    And Man City could pursue the Croat if they lose Ilkay Gundogan on a free transfer at the end of the campaign.
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    Kovacic signed a deal to permanently join the Blues in 2019 after a one-year loan spell at Stamford Bridge.
    Chelsea paid in the region of £40m, with the World Cup finalist going on to rack up more than 200 appearances, six goals and 15 assists.
    Along with his Champions League winner’s medal, Kovacic has also won the Europa League and Club World Cup during his time in West London.
    And he could be heading out of Chelsea’s exit door with England international Mount.
    The Blues academy prospect has failed to agree a new deal with his boyhood club and is set to become a free agent next summer.
    It means Boehly and Co could opt to cash in on him in the coming months, with Liverpool keeping a keen eye on the Three Lions star. More

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    Thiago Silva ‘is willing to quit Chelsea despite signing new contract three months ago’ to make emotional transfer

    THIAGO SILVA is reportedly pushing to LEAVE Chelsea even after signing a contract extension in February.Silva has apparently grown frustrated with the current situation at Stamford Bridge.
    Thiago Silva is reportedly keen to return to his former club FluminenseCredit: Rex
    According to Globo Esporte, the defender is now regretting his decision to sign a one-year contract extension with Chelsea three months ago.
    The Brazilian news outlet has said that Silva would scrap his Chelsea deal at the end of the 2022-23 campaign and return to his boyhood club.
    He apparently wants to agree a contract with Fluminense after seeing his good friend and fellow Brazil legend Marcelo sign one with them.
    The club, who are currently second in Brazil’s Serie A, are apparently also keen to pair the two up.
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    Globo Esporte claimed that the president of Fluminense Mario Bittencourt and former striker Fred have contacted Silva to encourage him to sign for the club before retiring.
    Silva has spoken about his wish to return to the Brazilian club, who he played for back in 2007-09, winning the Copa do Brasil.
    Speaking to TNT Sports, when asked about a possible return to the Brazilian the defender replied: “If I told you that I don’t think about it, I’d be lying to you.
    “It’s something that I think about, I already talked a few times with my wife.
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    “When you have a long career in Europe, your children grow up in Europe, this decision is difficult.
    “I do have this dream of returning to wear the shirt of Fluminense, everyone knows my desire.
    “But it’s something I prefer to leave in the future to see how things are going to happen.”
    It would probably be no surprise if the 38-year-old left Chelsea and tried with Fluminense to win the Copa Libertadores before hanging up his boots.
    Silva has been openly critical of Chelsea and the team’s situationCredit: Getty
    Silva has been a crucial figure in Chelsea’s defence since his move to the club in 2020 from Paris Saint-Germain.
    But, he has been openly critical of the situation at the club and its hierarchy, especially owner Todd Boehly.
    Back in April this year the defender was particularly dejected after being defeated by Real Madrid to exit the Champions League.
    He had to be consoled by interim boss Frank Lampard, and criticised the strategy of Todd Boehly after the match.
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    Silva was disappointed with his team’s exit from the Champions League this year as manager Frank Lampard (L) tried to console himCredit: Alamy
    Silva was quick to defend Lampard, saying “The manager can only pick 11 from a squad of 30-something – that’s tough.”
    But he went on to lambast Boehly’s £600m transfer spree, saying: “We signed eight in January, we need to stop and put a strategy in place otherwise next season we could make the same mistakes.” More