Chelsea want Frenchman at any price

Metro  seem to be providing all the gossip this afternoon at the Football Transfer Tavern as they claim that Chelsea are ready to offer Saint-Etienne any price for one of their top players.

The Blues and Jose Mourinho are so keen on defender Kurt Zouma that they have told the Ligue 1 side to name their price this summer as they attempt to lure him to Stamford Bridge and make him one of the new stars of Jose Mourinho’s second coming.

Mourinho considers the 18-year-old French Under-20 international to be the next Raphael Varane – who he of course brought into the first team at Real Madrid and saw the player’s stock rise considerably.

Now it seems Zouma is the next on his list and Mourinho is even thought to have approached the French side personally over a potential move.

The club are also thought to be set to join the race for Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney – who has made it known his favoured destination is that of Stamford Bridge and the Blues have also signed Andre Schurrle this summer so far. As with Mourinho’s first spell in charge, no expense is spared and Saint-Etienne are about to find that out with the Blues pursuit of Zouma.

Chelsea pondering a move for £38 Million teenage sensation

Chelsea are pondering a move for Schalke’s exciting attacking-midfielder Julian Draxler as the 19-year old player’s club have given assurances that they will not make the player inaccessible should any club come knocking on the door for his services. The Blues have already added Germany attacker Andre Schurrle to their embarrassing attacking riches, but it seems the Stamford Bridge club are thinking hard about a £38 million bid for Schalke whiz-kid, Draxler.

Draxler enjoyed a stellar campaign with Schalke during the previous season and his excellent performances have put him firmly under the spotlight, as it is reported that Arsenal were keen on securing the player’s services not too long ago.

Schalke, however have been wise enough to tie down the player till the 2018 season and only an extremely big offer will force the club’s hand to part ways with the player.

However, the Bundesliga club have said that they will not block any potential move for the player, should moneybags Chelsea or Real Madrid make their long-standing interest in the player official by lodging a bid.

Schalke’s CEO told German paper Express, ”It is not necessarily a bad thing when a club like Chelsea are interested. Julian is an important player for Schalke and we obviously want to hold on to him. However, if you want the best for someone, you will have to consider allowing him to move abroad at some point. What are we supposed to tell Julian when a club like Real Madrid make an enquiry for him? Tell him not to speak to them? That would simply be ridiculous. Those days are behind us now”.

However, Schalke could advise their star-player to carry on with the club for for one more season to aid his rapid development, but should a big-money offer be lodged for the player’s services, Draxler could yet move abroad during the summer transfer window.

Who will end up being the greatest player at the Bridge: Mata, Hazard or even Oscar?

West Ham knew it would be tricky when they travelled to Stamford Bridge at the weekend, but playing Chelsea is more than tough when both Juan Mata and Eden Hazard are on form, and the pair of them combined to devastating effect to guide their side to a comfortable win.

At no point during this season have Chelsea had a reliable striker to call on, but for most of the time it has barely mattered. Mata became the first player to collect ten league goals and ten assists in the Premier League this season at the weekend, whilst Hazard has eight in each category in the league.

Across all competitions the pair have scored 30 goals and set up 43, and they are now the axis around which Chelsea's attack dominates. Chelsea might not have been able to replace Didier Drogba with another striker of the same quality, but the side has not lost out overall, with their attacking midfielders now the fulcrum of their play.

Hazard matched Mata's goal tally from the Spaniard's first season at the weekend, and there is every chance the Belgian will go on to add a few more in the last few months. The real challenge will be trying to emulate Mata in his second season, when the Spanish maestro has developed into one of the best players in the Premier League.

If Mata continues to improve at his current rate, surely not even Hazard can live with him, but it will be interesting to see which of the pair ends up as the bigger legend at Stamford Bridge. As Frank Lampard nears the end of a glittering career at the Blues, Chelsea have at least two men who look able to carry his mantle to even greater heights.

But they might even have three. So far Oscar's best performances have come in Europe, with his brace against Juventus the mark of a truly special player. Coming from Brazil, he had a harder job to settle in England than Mata or Hazard, but he has certainly done well in his first season. Chelsea will no doubt be hoping he can develop even quicker in the company of Hazard and Mata, and given that all three are still very young, the future looks very bright at Stamford Bridge.

Which of Oscar, Mata and Hazard do you think will end up having the biggest impact at Chelsea?

Spanish report claims 'exclusive' with Falcao to Chelsea negotiations advanced in secret meeting

Falcao to Chelsea is a transfer saga which appears to have a fresh twist each week.

Atletico Madrid are said to be wise to the fact they could lose star striker Falcao this summer, with Javier Hernandez and Burak Yilmaz two strikers touted as potential replacements in recent days.

Talk in Spain heightening over the Colombian's impending departure, with Spanish radio show Punto Pelota running an 'exclusive' regarding his future.

So what does this 'exclusive' contain exactly?

Well it claims that on Sunday, an hour before Atletico Madrid took on Osasuna in La Liga, the club's top brass convened a secret meeting in the Spanish capital.

Present were Miguel Angel Gil, club CEO, Jorge Mendes, Falcao's agent, and intriguingly - former Chelsea director Peter Kenyon.

It is claimed by Punto Pelota that the meeting had two outcomes:

- Atletico admitted they have no chance of matching any wages Chelsea will offer the Colombian striker.

- As part of any deal with Chelsea, the club want to push to keep goalkeeper Thiabut Courtois another year.

Now neither of these statements are earth-shatteringly fresh, but the fact the meeting took place and Atletico are making a plan of action regarding Falcao's future is new.

But what of Peter Kenyon's involvement?

Well Kenyon remains on good terms with Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich; but most poignantly - It has been previously claimed that he stands to profit from the deal.

The Mail reported last year that Kenyon is in business with Jorge Mendes, running three third-party ownership football funds. They are claimed to have a stake in Falcao which Atletico would have to repay as third party ownership is forbidden in the Premier League, which is why he was involved in negotiations.

With UEFA pushing FIFA to outlaw third party ownership, it is in all parties interests for the move to Chelsea to go through quickly, and Kenyon's business holdings to recapture and profit the stake they hold in Falcao. 

While Punto Pelota claim Kenyon's presence at the meeting was an indication he will move to the Blues, it is likely he was there due to the latter, but they also stated he is still in regular contact with Roman Abramovich and if he can use his Chelsea contacts to his own advantage, bet on it happening.

Do you expect Falcao to sign for Chelsea in the summer?

Belgian star remains coy on Chelsea future

Lukaku has excelled at West Brom. (©GettyImages)

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On-loan Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku has refused to discuss his immediate future, saying that he wants to focus on finishing the season strongly with West Brom.

In a recent interview with Sky Sports, the 19-year-old remained coy on where he will be playing his football in 2013/14, having enjoyed an impressive campaign at The Hawthorns.

Lukaku has scored 13 goals for the Baggies in just 25 Premier League appearances for Steve Clarke's side, which is the best return of any teenager in England's top-flight since Michael Owen for Liverpool in 1999.

Despite his string of scintillating performances there is no certainty that the Belgian international will be any closer to breaking into the Chelsea first-team next term, particularly while the club remains without a permanent manager. And, for that reason, Lukaku is just thinking about the here and now. 

"I am just waiting until the end of season," he said. "I am just performing for West Brom at the moment, we will see what will happen and I don't want to talk about it either.

"I want to go back to my parent club in the future - but we are doing well and I hope it will continue."

Lukaku first signed for Chelsea from Anderlecht in 2011 for an initial £10million fee that could rise to £17million with add-ons, signing a five-year contract that should keep him at Stamford Bridge until 2016.

After playing a bit-part role for the Blues in 2011/12, the 6ft 3in forward was sent to West Brom for the season to gain more first-team experience in the Premier League, and has since excelled in the Midlands.

Chelsea's young stars coming of age

Hazard & Oscar have impressed at Chelsea this season (©GettyImages)

Football News 24/7

There was a modern, fresh feel to Chelsea's win over West Ham United last weekend.

Whilst Ashely Cole and Petr Cech were their usual reliable selves and Frank Lampard started and scored, the main stars of this show were Juan Mata and Eden Hazard. 

The diminutive duo were at their creative best on Sunday afternoon. Hazard assisted for Lampard before firing in himself after an exquisite Juan Mata pass. It was not the first time these two had combined this season. 

This match was further evidence that the 'Old Guard' of Munich and Moscow are slowly taking a back seat in the modern Chelsea. 

John Terry currently finds himself in a rotation policy and has barely featured in the league this season, although he has also been hampered with injuries. Lampard must take credit for scoring 200 goals from midfield and edging closer to the all-time Chelsea record, although he too is no longer a first-team regular and rumoured to be leaving the club. 

It's not only Hazard and Mata that represent this emphatic change of style. Youngsters such as Oscar, Victor Moses and Marko Marin also add flair and skill to the side. Whilst not hitting massive heights yet, these players have tremendous ability. Oscar especially has looked exceptional in parts this year. 

Didier Drogba left as a hero last May. Lampard looks set to follow him this year. Ashley Cole and John Terry both enter the last year in their contracts soon and are perhaps unlikely to be renewed too. 

We are in the middle of a huge transition at Chelsea. 

Transfer News: Cech rubbishes any talk of Arsenal switch

Chelsea goalkeeper and Czech international Petr Cech has rubbished any possibility of himself making the move across London to the Emirates.

Recently there have been unsubstantiated reports linking the shot-stopper with a move to Emirates, although many Gooners rightly dismissed the claims.