Chelsea join race for world-class Real Madrid star amid conflicting reports over new contract

Chelsea have entered the frame to sign Brazil superstar Vinicius Junior, while the Spanish media are split on whether he will accelerate contract discussions with Real Madrid.

There has been plenty of talk about Vinicius’ state of mind and his future following his recent Ballon d’Or snub. Many fans and journalists alike had expected the winger to win the award, but it emerged shortly before the start of the event that Manchester City midfielder Rodri was actually in line to lift the coveted trophy.

Furious that Vinicius would not be presented with the trophy, everyone from Real Madrid decided to snub the event altogether.

Rodri went on to win the Ballon d’Or instead, becoming the first Premier League star since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2008 to do so.

Since that major disappointment, there has been speculation that Vinicius may look to leave Madrid.

According to Spanish outlets Marca and Relevo, Chelsea have joined the race to sign the lethal forward. Enzo Maresca’s side are ‘tracking’ Vinicius’ situation and will move in if they learn that he wants to take part in a new challenge.

But Chelsea are not alone in eyeing Vinicius. Premier League rivals Manchester United were named as potential suitors last week, while Paris Saint-Germain would love to add him to their forward line.

PSG are hoping to get ‘revenge’ on Madrid for Kylian Mbappe’s exit by taking Vinicius to France in a blockbuster transfer.

Further afield, the Saudis are keeping tabs on Vinicius. They have drawn up a stunning contract offer for the 24-year-old – rumoured to be worth as much as €1billion over five years – but appreciate it will still be hard to convince him to leave Europe.

Madrid do not want to lose Vinicius under any circumstances and have contacted his entourage to let them know they want to start contract talks.

The wide man’s current deal runs until June 2027 and Madrid want to give him a bumper new contract to end all the exit links.

Some sections of the Spanish press claim that Vinicius has rejected the opportunity to engage in contract talks with Madrid as he wants to court interest from rival sides.

Marca, though, state that Vinicius does intend to renew his contract in the Spanish capital as he is very happy at Madrid and is gunning to win next year’s Ballon d’Or.

The Flamengo academy graduate had hoped to use his Ballon d’Or victory this year to ensure he gets the best possible contract offer from Madrid.

That plan has been scuppered by Rodri, though Vinicius can still use the Saudis’ massive contract proposal as leverage with Madrid.

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Chelsea plot elite signing

Chelsea fans would be delighted to see Vinicius join their club as he is one of the deadliest attackers in the world and would surely rip it up in the Premier League.

Chelsea do already have several players capable of operating on the left flank, including Jadon Sancho, Pedro Neto and Mykhailo Mudryk.

But Vinicius is a clear upgrade on those stars and would solve Chelsea’s issues at left wing for good.

Unfortunately for Maresca, it will be tough to convince Vinicius to swap Madrid for Chelsea. Maresca has only just started his project at Stamford Bridge, and his side are not yet at the level required to compete for the biggest honours such as the Premier League and Champions League.

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Meanwhile, Chelsea have been told a bid of £35m (€41.6m / $45.4m) will be required to reunite Maresca with Leicester star Mads Hermansen.

Maresca rates the goalkeeper highly after the pair worked together last season.

Hermansen is one option Chelsea are considering in case they need to find a new No 1 to replace Robert Sanchez.

According to journalist Ben Jacobs, Hermansen will cost £35m to sign, though Chelsea might not need him as they already have ‘extremely’ talented shot-stopper Mike Penders on their books.

Separate reports in Spain suggest that Chelsea are ready to listen to offers for £107m (€127.3m / $138.8m) signing Enzo Fernandez.

Maresca has decided to bench Fernandez as he would rather rely on Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia in midfield during the biggest games.

It is claimed that the Chelsea board have become ‘concerned’ by the Argentine’s lack of game time. They do not want Fernandez’s transfer value to plummet while he warms the bench.