Mourinho Plotting Raid On Chelsea As Man Utd Eye £11.8m Defender Deal

The opening of the summer transfer window is fast approaching so we’ll bring you all the latest transfer rumours and gossip from around the globe. Today, Man Utd are linked with Cesar Azpilicueta….

Jose Mourinho is eyeing an audacious raid on former club Chelsea with the new Manchester United boss looking to lure Cesar Azpilicueta to Old Trafford in an £11.8m deal, according to the Express.

Mourinho was appointed as the new United manager last month and he’s already started to revamp the squad he inherited from Louis van Gaal after splashing out on Ivory Coast centre-back Eric Bailly from Villarreal with several further new additions likely to come in this summer.

However, the so-called ‘Special One’ is also expected to axe a number of players to make room for the new arrivals with Italian international Matteo Darmian one of the players reportedly at risk after an indifferent debut season in England following his move form Torino.

It means Mourinho is on the look out for a new right-back and it appears he’s ready to target a familiar face as the Express claim the Portuguese coach is plotting a raid on former club Chelsea for Cesar Azpilicueta.

The Spanish international has been one of the Blues’ most consistent performers since arriving from Marseille in 2012 and he played a key role in helping Mourinho’s Chelsea land the Premier League title during the 2014/15 campaign.

Surprisingly, the Express claim that incoming Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is open to the idea of selling Azpilicueta as he may not fit in to the system the Italian coach wants to implement at Stamford Bridge.

It remains to be seen whether the West Londoners would be willing to do business with a direct rival like United but the paper does suggest that the 26-year-old could be available for as little as £11.8m.

That sounds like an absolute bargain for a player of Azpilicueta’s talent in today’s market and I’d be shocked if that valuation was accurate, but understandably United aren’t the only club understood to be interested as the Express states that PSG and Athletic Bilbao are also pursuing the Spaniard.

READ MORE –> Chelsea transfer news | Man Utd transfer news

I’m sure that if Chelsea do decide to cash-in on Azpilicueta this summer, they’d prefer to sell abroad rather than to United so I personally can’t see anything coming of this speculation. Plus, Chelsea will be reluctant to sell players to Mourinho so soon after sacking him so I think he’ll have to look elsewhere in his search for a new right-back this summer.