New club emerge as favourites to sign Chelsea midfield enforcer
Britain Soccer Football - Chelsea v AFC Bournemouth - Premier League - Stamford Bridge - 26/12/16 Bournemouth's Joshua King in action with Chelsea's Nemanja Matic Action Images via Reuters / Tony O'Brien Livepic EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Juventus are now leading the race to sign Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic, according to Daily Mail journalist Simon Jones.
Inter Milan had emerged as Manchester United’s key rivals for the 28 year old but it seems the Nerazzurri will be unable to match the Serbian’s contract demands, leaving Juve as the frontrunners.
The Blues are unlikely to have any further dealings with United after they snapped up Romelu Lukaku, which makes Juventus the preferred choice for the London club.
Bianconeri boss Max Allegri is said to be a big fan of Matic, but had been pursuing a deal for Paris Saint-Germain’s Blaise Matuidi. The Frenchman has one year left on his contract at PSG, and is unlikely to sign a new deal. He would likely cost less than the £40m that Chelsea are demanding for Matic but his wage demands would be far higher than the Blues midfielder.
Despite being a regular under manager Antonio Conte last season, the Serbian will lose his place in the first team to Tiemoue Bakyaoko who is close to signing for £40m from Monaco.