Chelsea will match Wayne Rooney’s £240,000-a-week wages in a five-year deal worth a staggering £60million, if he can force his way out of Manchester United.
Rooney is Jose Mourinho’s first-choice transfer target and the Chelsea chief has been encouraged that he can still land the striker this summer.
Although Rooney was told by David Moyes last week that he will not be allowed to leave United, there are issues which remain unresolved.
Target: Chelsea are set to launch a bid for Wayne Rooney despite David Moyes saying he is not for sale
Will he stay or will he go? Rooney’s future at Manchester United has been debated this summer
New man in charge: David Moyes says he does not want to sell Rooney
Rooney, who has two years left on his Old Trafford deal, is showing no sign of backing down and Chelsea want to take advantage.
He will cost about £30m if United can be persuaded to sell, but that will not be an issue for Chelsea.
Mourinho, who took charge of first-team training yesterday for the first time after the summer break, wants to give Rooney a fresh start at Stamford Bridge.
Welcome back, Jose: Frank Lampard and John Terry will be pleased to see the return of Mourinho to Chelsea
Under instruction: The Portuguese speaks to Demba Ba and Gary Cahill while armed with an iPad
Mourinho is also monitoring Luis Suarez’s position at Liverpool and has asked his advisors to be kept informed about his position. Arsenal are also monitoring the Uruguayan, but remain focused on rubber-stamping Gonzalo Higuain’s protracted move from Real Madrid.
Higuain has agreed to join the Gunners in a deal that could be worth up to £150,000 a week to the Argentinian.
But the clubs are still around £2m apart in terms of a transfer fee — with Real demanding £25m.
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
