Mourinho may offload Mikel for Gustavo

Chelsea are ready to table a £15million bid for Bayern Munich midfielder Luiz Gustavo

Returning boss Jose Mourinho has prioritised the signing of a holding midfield player for the Stamford Bridge club.



He has doubts about John Obi Mikel’s ability to play in that role.

Bayern’s signing of Thiago Alcantara from Barcelona is likely to limit Gustavo’s first-team opportunities this season.

And the player wants regular first-team football to ensure he is part of the Brazil team for next summer’s World Cup.

Chelsea are also keen on bringing back midfielder Nemanja Matic - a fringe player at the Bridge from 2009-2011 - from Benfica, but his £25m price-tag is putting them off.

Guardiola plots £40m Luiz bid

BAYERN MUNICH are ready to offer £40million for Chelsea’s David Luiz. Boss Pep Guardiola wanted the Brazilian when he was in charge of Barcelona.

Now, having moved to European champions Bayern, Guardiola is ready to pounce.

He put out feelers for the defender while Luiz was starring for the Brazil side that won the Confederations Cup last month.

The 26-year-old has returned for pre-season with Chelsea, under new Stamford Bridge boss Jose Mourinho and Guardiola is back on his trail.

An insider revealed: “The performance exposed some weaknesses that Pep believes could be sorted out by bringing in Luiz.”

 

Asian tour: Chelsea beat Malaysia4 -1

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - English football giants Chelsea cruised to a 4-1 victory over a Malaysian selection as part of their pre-season Asia tour on Sunday.

Bertrand Traore opened the floodgates in the fifth minute, tapping home a low cross from Kevin De Bruyne after a deft dummy from Romelu Lukaku.

The Blues doubled their advantage just before the half hour mark, as De Bruyne -- returning from a loan spell at Werder Bremen -- smashed home an unstoppable half volley after taking Lukaku's flicked header in his stride.

An awkward landing followed the scorching shot however, and the promising Belgian was stretchered off moments later clutching his knee.

Lukaku put the tie to bed in first-half injury time with a near post finish to make it 3-0.

The second half was pretty much a procession as Chelsea were barely threatened by a Malaysian side who lacked the spark to trouble the Blues' defence.

There was drama in the dying stages of the match as Victor Moses drove home a fourth for Chelsea in the 88th minute.

The Malaysian fans finally had something to cheer about in stoppage time as Fadhli Shas headed home a consolation goal for the home side.

Chelsea's victory came on the heels of a 1-0 win over Thailand's Singha All-Star XI on Wednesday, thanks to a goal by Romelo Lukaku.

The Blues next head to Jakarta under close scrutiny after new team manager Jose Mourinho reportedly made a 10 million pounds (11.5 million euros, $15.1 million) bid for Manchester United star Wayne Rooney.

The Premier League champions insist the England striker is not for sale.

Liverpool reject £30m Arsenal bid for Suarez

Liverpool have turned down a £30m bid from Arsenal for striker Luis Suarez. Suarez has been at the centre of transfer speculation since saying in May that it would be a “good moment for a change”, and admitted it would be “difficult to say no” to Real Madrid.

The Spanish side had been expected to lead the pursuit of the 26-year-old Uruguayan.

[caption id="attachment_301427" align="alignleft" width="200"] Suarez[/caption]

Liverpool refused to comment on reports of Arsenal’s move and have previously insisted Suarez is not for sale.

However, it is understood an approach was made and instantly rejected. Chelsea have also been linked with a move for Suarez and it remains to be seen if Arsenal take their interest further as manager Arsene Wenger continues to finalise a deal for Real Madrid’s Gonzalo Higuain.

Real are expected to emerge as the most serious test of Liverpool’s resolve not to sell Suarez unless they receive an offer in the region of the £50m which saw Fernando Torres move to Chelsea in January 2011.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers remains relaxed about Suarez’s situation and the striker has yet to indicate to the club that he wishes to leave.

The Merseyside club’s stance has always been that they have no desire to part with Suarez - and even if Liverpool’s hand is forced by the player’s own discontent they will not be pushed into a deal and will hold out for the maximum price.

Suarez is currently on a break after playing for Uruguay in the Confederations Cup in Brazil and is not scheduled to return to Merseyside until the end of the month, at which time his future should become clearer.

He will sit out the first six matches of the 2013-14 campaign after being found guilty of violent conduct for biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic in April.