Chelsea are reportedly plotting a £70 million January bid to land Real Madrid midfielder Isco, who is also a target for Arsenal.
According to a report by The Sun, Chelsea have taken the lead ahead of Arsenal and Manchester City in the race to sign Isco in the January transfer window. The Blues are lining up a bid worth £70 million, in addition to offering a £250,000-a-week deal to the Spaniard, to swoop him away from Real Madrid.
Isco joined Real Madrid from Malaga in the summer of 2013, amid a lot of excitement surrounding his talent. With the player now in his sixth season, he is yet to fulfil the potential that his talent promised, as a result of which he has never quite managed to be a regular fixture in the starting lineup over the course of a campaign.
Isco though, remains a player who is highly regarded, not just by the Real Madrid faithful but also by several other top clubs across Europe. Some of them hold serious interest in signing him, particularly with the Spaniard hitting a brick wall under Santiago Solari. Chelsea and Arsenal are ready to pounce on the opportunity.
Mateo Kovacic has been a fine addition to Maurizio Sarri’s squad, even though he might have petered out a bit for a while. But, the fact that the Croat’s loan deal has no option to buy leaves Chelsea searching for possible options to replace him in case they are unable to land him in a permanent deal.
Arsenal’s intentions, on the other hand, are pretty straightforward, with the Gunners in the hunt for a like-for-like replacement for Aaron Ramsey, who is set to depart the Emirates on a free transfer next summer. Isco is thus, a viable target for the North Londoners.
Meanwhile, Manchester City have also been credited with interest in the 26-year-old as they look to make their squad even more world class. But, Chelsea are looking to usurp both the Premier League champions and Arsenal, having already lined up a £70 million bid to tempt Real Madrid to sell their man in January.
In addition to the transfer fee, Chelsea are also set to offer a deal worth £250,000 per week to the player in order to persuade him to make the winter switch. With a hefty signing-on fee also set to be included and the player favouring the move to Stamford Bridge, the Blues will fancy their chances of beating Arsenal and Manchester City.
With Isco surplus to requirements at Real Madrid, a January move is certainly a possibility. It now remains to be seen if Chelsea can bypass the player’s eye watering release clause, or if they can reach an agreement over a transfer fee with Los Blancos to add another world class talent to their squad.
