Everton star paves the way for a £40m bid from Chelsea after handing in transfer request

Everton defender John Stones has handed in a transfer request in a bid to push for a move to Chelsea

JOHN STONES handed in a transfer request last night as he tried to force his way out of Everton on the way to a £40million move to Chelsea.

The England defender's demand was made before training yesterday, and Chelsea are now expected to make their fourth bid, of around £35m plus add-ons, with a deal expected to be completed in the next few days.

Everton have not yet rejected Stones' request having insisted the 21-year-old is not for sale, but they are expected to do so today.

Chelsea have had offers of £20m, £26m and £30m turned down by Everton this summer but the Premier League champions have remained determined to land their man.

And Stones, who joined the Toffees for £3m from Barnsley in 2013 and has four years left on his contract, has now made it clear he wants the move by taking matters into his own hands.

However, earlier yesterday manager Roberto Martinez remained defiant and insisted he had no qualms about picking Stones to face his former club in the Capital One Cup at Oakwell tonight.

"John is above any transfer speculation and he has shown that," Martinez said. "He's just focused and professional and gets on with his role. We think the world of John.

"For John it's more than just a cup game. He's going back to where he grew up, so it is a nice reference."

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, who last week spent £42m on Spain forward Pedro and Ghana defender Baba Rahman, has made it clear Stones is the man he wants to shore up a Chelsea defence that has started the season poorly.

He regards Stones as captain John Terry's long-term successor alongside French youngster Kurt Zouma - and Terry has made a poor start to the campaign, taken off at half-time in the 3-0 defeat by Manchester City and sent off at West Brom on Sunday.

Chelsea, who are offering Stones a five-year deal at around £125,000 a week - four times his Goodison salary - are still interested in Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba are planning a £72m offer.

Everton, meanwhile, are close to finalising deals for Argentine defender Ramiro Funes Mori and Uruguay striker Leandro Rodriguez.

The Toffees are poised to conclude the £5m signing of River Plate centre-back Mori while still remain in negotiations with Montevideo River Plate over Rodriguez.

They have, however, ended their interest in Ukraine forward Andriy Yarmolenko with the player now set to remain at Dynamo Kyiv.