Despite Maurizio Sarri being very interested in signing Nicolo Barella from Cagliari, the Serie A side’s asking price of around €50m is putting Marina Granovskaia off.
A week or so ago, it was reported that Roman Abramovich’s right hand would rather spend money on Zenit St Petersburg’s Leandro Paredes thanks to his past Champions League experience.
Well, according to Gazzetta dello Sport’s Nicolo Schira, Chelsea are keen to get a deal over the line, with Granovskaia allegedly offering €30m to the Russian side for the Argentine’s services.
An agreement has reportedly been reached between the Blues and the player for a four and a half year contract worth €4.5m/year, with the player wanting to leave Russia
However, RIA Novosti in Russia have since claimed that a source close to the matter told them Zenit ‘aren’t planning’ on letting their midfielder go for the amount offered by Chelsea.
Having let Cesc Fabregas swap Stamford Bridge for Monaco late last week, the Blues are keen to find a replacement for Sarri, but it seems it will come at a cost.
Most likely more than €30m.
