Exclusive report makes England talent for £50m fee look possible for Chelsea this summer | OneFootball

Chelsea’s links to Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo have been around for a while, and it doesn’t seem like they’re going anywhere.

A trickle of reporting we saw over the weekend began with the Guardian leading the charge with a full exclusive on the young England star’s future. They see him as increasingly likely to leave United as a dispute over his new contract terms continue.

That piece made a move to Europe seem more likely, but today CaughtOffside have swung in with their take that Chelsea are “preparing to step up their pursuit” of the teenager, who is still on £20,000 a week at Old Trafford and is looking to take that number to £180,000 or more.

While United are hamstrung by Financial Fair Play rules and by cost cutting measure introduced this season, Chelsea have a little more room to work. But why would the Blues want another midfielder? According to this piece, it’s all about Romeo Lavia.

The midfielder missed all of last season, and has managed less than 600 minutes this season. Doubts about his “long term fitness” have started to grow at Stamford Bridge apparently, and you can hardly blame anyone for starting to think this guy might be a long term problem.

Big fee and big wages make Mainoo a tricky deal

Kobbie Mainoo with a Chelsea and Man U logo. (Photo by Ben Roberts Photo/Getty Images)

Mainoo is 19 and a full England international. The Red Devils apparently want £75m for him, but we can see him going for closer to £50m plus bonuses given his contract situation.

What it will really come down to is whether Chelsea are willing to give him the serious salary that United don’t want to. It would be a big move from our sporting directors, but we’ve seen them give similar sums to players of a similar age already, so it’s not impossible.