Chelsea To Submit £26m Defender Bid Within 48 Hours Amid Reports Of Man Utd Talks

With the summer transfer window in full swing, managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads ahead of next season so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Chelsea are ready to up their offer for John Stones…

Chelsea will table an improved £26m offer for John Stones amid reports that Manchester United have made discrete enquiries of their own for the Everton defender, according to the Guardian.

Stones has developed into one of the best young talents in England since moving to Goodison Park from Barnsley in 2013 and his potential has caught the eye of some top Premier League clubs this summer.

Sky Sports News reported earlier this month that Chelsea had seen an opening £20m bid rejected by Everton and the West Londoners then infuriated the Merseysider’s after Jose Mourinho and Gary Cahill spoke publicly about their pursuit of the centre-back.

The strained relationship between Chelsea and Everton seemed to open the door for Manchester United as the Mirror reported just yesterday that the Red Devils had held initial talks with the Toffees about a potential move for Stones.

However, it looks like United’s interest is only going to accelerate Chelsea’s pursue as the Guardian claim today that Mourinho is pushing ahead with his move and will table an improved £26m offer within the next 48 hours.

The newspaper suggests that Stones is unlikely to be able to resist the opportunity to play in the Champions League and Chelsea are understood to be confident of getting a deal agreed before the new season kicks off – although the report does state that the fee could eventual reach £30m if Everton decide to dig their heels in.

We’ll have to wait and see how things develop over the coming days but I personally think we’ll see Roberto Martinez’s side reject Chelsea’s improved offer and that could see United step-up their pursuit and really challenge the Blues for his signature.

Stones would be the ideal long-term replacement for John Terry but he’s unlikely to get a lot of immediate first team football this coming season so perhaps he’d be more tempted by a switch to Old Trafford.

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Louis van Gaal needs to sign a new centre-back this summer and Stones is the kind of player he could build his new-look defence around for years to come so it would be interesting to see who the 21-year-old would opt for if both Chelsea and United were able to agree deals.

I think it’s only a matter of time until Stones leaves Goodison Park and whoever does end up winning the race for his signature is going to sign a superb young defender, even if they have to pay a little over the odds to land him.