Chelsea ready to hijack Arsenal’s bid to sign £80m star despite transfer ban

We’re now at the business end of the summer transfer window and managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip from around the globe. Here, the race for Wilfried Zaha hots-up…

Chelsea could be ready to hijack Arsenal’s bid to sign Wilfried Zaha as the Blues eye a deal that would see them land the £80m-rated Crystal Palace winger next summer, according to the Telegraph.

Zaha has rekindled his career at Palace following a failed stint at Manchester United with the 26-year-old developing into one of the best wingers in the Premier League during his time at Selhurst Park.

However, Zaha’s future has been in doubt since he went public with his desire to seek a new challenge earlier this summer after Arsenal had expressed their interest in signing the Ivory Coast international.

Unai Emery is desperate to add a wide forward to his squad ahead of the new season and Sky Sports News reporter Kaveh Solhekol claimed earlier this week that Arsenal are set to table an improved offer for Zaha after seeing their opening £40m bid rejected.

Arsenal thought they had a clear run at Zaha and were initially confident of getting a deal agreed after the players brother told various media outlets the winger wanted to secure a move to his boyhood club this summer.

However, Arsenal’s bid to sign Zaha is under serious threat as the Telegraph claims Chelsea are now weighing up an offer of their own that would see them sign the player next summer once they’ve served their transfer ban.

That kind of deal may suit Palace as it would allow Zaha to remain at Selhurst Park for another season and give them time to find a replacement while it may also boost their hopes of landing Michy Batshuayi following his loan spell last season.

The Telegraph says Everton are also in the race to sign Zaha and are ready to offer Palace £60m plus Cenk Tosun in exchange for his signature -an offer that would be a lot closer to matching Palace’s £80m valuation.

However, the newspaper says Zaha wants to remain in London and favours a move to Arsenal or Chelsea so the Toffees will have a tough time luring the winger to Goodison Park even if a deal can be agreed with Palace.

Read–> Arsenal transfer news | Chelsea transfer news

It’s a fascinating situation and it’s going to be interesting to see how things play out over the coming days but it looks like there will be a fierce battle over Zaha’s signature before the window closes in less than two weeks time.