Blues to join fight for Bayern’s £80m star
CHELSEA are ready to enter into the £80million chase for Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski.
The Poland World Cup striker, 29, wants to leave the German champions after four years, having fallen out with coach Jupp Heynckes.
Lewandowksi is also being chased by Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain, with a Europe-wide battle for his signature opening up with the news that his time at Bayern could be up having won the Bundesliga four years in a row.
Lewandowski’s agent Pini Zahavi said: “Robert feels he needs a change and a new challenge in his career. The managers of Bayern know about it. His reasons are not money or a specific club, as nearly all top clubs would like to have the world’s best striker.
“Every one of the Bayern leadership had great careers themselves. They should understand his situation.” Zahavi has had firm links with
EXCLUSIVE
Chelsea for many years and is a close associate of owner Roman Abramovich, which should give the FA Cup holders a major advantage over their rivals – although the £80m price tag could prove a major snag.
Sources close to Lewandowski, who has three years left on his contract, have told Express Sport that Chelsea are one of the clubs who have registered interest in the striker.
Lewandowski, who is preparing for the World Cup, has scored more than 40 goals in all competitions in each of the last three seasons. He was the top scorer in the Bundesliga last term with 29 goals in 30 games and will not be short of suitors. Chelsea are pushing ahead with their transfer business even though they are still in the middle of a process of moving on one manager, in Antonio Conte, and bringing in another in the shape of Napoli’s Maurizio Sarri. Transfer targets for this summer have already been identified, Lewandowski among them, alongside Anthony Martial and Jean Michael Seri, and the players’ representatives have been told that a decision will have been made by the beginning of June. Sarri’s deal with Napoli still has two years to run and has not been terminated despite the appointment of former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti as his replacement.
Chelsea are still in talks with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, who is insisting that they pay the £7m required to free Sarri under the terms of a release clause in his contract.
That stipulation runs out today, and Sarri could then resign, which would cost about £500,000 – although Chelsea would still have to pay compensation, believed to be £3.5m.
It is thought that Sarri has transfer targets of his own who he wants to bring in if his appointment is eventually confirmed, among them Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain and Napoli centreback Kalidou Koulibaly.
Chelsea, who have also spoken to former PSG coach Laurent Blanc, are in talks with Conte’s representatives over the £9m they will owe him if, as expected, he is dismissed this summer with a year still left of his contract, despite winning the FA Cup this month.
Most clubs would like to have world’s best striker