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| Chelsea will have to break the British transfer record if they want to sign Juventus star Paul Pogba |
PAUL POGBA wants a contract worth an astonishing £82.5million over five years from Chelsea.
And the Stamford Bridge club are set to have to pay a mammoth £72m if they are to bring the French international to Chelsea before Tuesday's transfer deadline – which would mean an outlay of some £154.5m.
Pogba, 22, who is Chelsea's top midfield target this summer, wants Chelsea to match what Barcelona have offered him in a deal slated for next summer worth around £318,000 a week, or £16.5m a year.
It is a deal that would shatter Chelsea's wage structure – the club's highest paid player at the moment is Belgian Eden Hazard on a £250,000 a week deal.
Chelsea though are determined to try to get Pogba, and have already had a £54 million bid rejected last week. But they are ready to break the British transfer record to get their man.
Manager Jose Mourinho, whose efforts to sign Everton defender John Stones look to have been frustrated, with the Merseysiders rejecting Chelsea's £37m bid and turning down the player's transfer request on Thursday, is determined to bring in one new player before the deadline.
Mourinho said: "Hopefully I can bring one player in. Hopefully.
"But we are not in trouble. We are not desperate. We are not panicking because the transfer window closes in a couple of days.
"If we get him, we get him. If not, we don't. But for a perfect shape of the squad, one more player would give us a good balance."
Juventus expect Barcelona, who are subject to a transfer ban until January, to make the first move on former Manchester United midfielder Pogba next summer.
It is understood that the French international has been made aware of what the Spanish giants will offer him - and now wants Chelsea to match those terms.
Chelsea will make one more push to get Pogba before Tuesday, with a bid of around £72m - a figure which owner Roman Abramovich is not prepared at the moment to go above - expected in the next 48 hours.
If they cannot get Pogba now though, Chelsea will try to beat Barcelona to the punch for the Juventus star next summer, by fixing up a deal in the next 12 months.
Similarly, Chelsea have now all but accepted that their bid for Stones has been defeated, and are now looking at alternatives, including Raphael Varane of Real Madrid. But another move for the England defender In January has not been ruled out, with the player having made it clear to Everton that he wants a move.
Chelsea meanwhile are confident of completing a deal for Guangzhou Evergrande fullback Zhang Linpeng.
The 26-year old China international is close to agreeing a move with the Stamford Bridge club, but is set to be loaned out immediately if the deal is completed, due to work permit regulations.
Everton have pledged to look at security arrangements for their players after Stones faced fan abuse for putting in a transfer request.
The club have been concerned by claims that Stones had to move out of his house and into a hotel after being targeted by a minority of supporters for trying to force through a move to Chelsea.
While the vast majority of the club's fanbase have been peaceful in their attempts to encourage the 21-year-old to stay, the possibility of a security risk is one that manager Roberto Martinez is taking seriously.
Martinez believes the emotions created during the transfer window have the potential to create such risks for clubs across the Premier League.
He said: "We will keep an eye on things security-wise as a football club and I think every club will do that. During the transfer window, we have to be more aware because we are exposing our players."
Martinez believes that the controversy surrounding Stones will die down after his transfer request was rejected by chairman Bill Kenwright on Thursday.
Everton have maintained throughout the summer that they will not sell the centre-back, and have rejected three bids from Chelsea, including one of £30million.
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