According to reports in Italy and England this morning, Chelsea are planning a move for Juventus and Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon in the January transfer window.
Both La Stampa of Turin and Corriere dello Sport report that a bid of 50 million euros will be accepted by Juve and see Buffon take his place between the sticks at Stamford Bridge in the New Year.
And Buffon's representative is giving credence to the story, saying that Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will make his move in an attempt to solve his goalkeeping crisis.
First-choice goalkeeper Petr Cech faces a long time out of the game after fracturing his skull against Reading on Saturday, and although the Czech international is said to be making good progress, it is not known exactly how long his recover will take, with warnings from specialists that any premature comeback could be extremely risky in terms of the player's health.
Under the circumstances, Mourinho is said to be anxious to bring in another world-class keeper as soon as possible.
And in England's Sun newspaper, Buffon's representative Paolo Fabbri is quoted as saying that the Premiership champions are interested in 28-year-old Gigi.
"We are aware (Chelsea owner) Roman Abramovich can offer fortunes," he said. "What he needs is to convince the player it's the right move for him. This is not a financial issue, it's about a chance in life.
"I don't think he wants to leave Italy but things can change quickly in football."
Buffon still has four years left on his current Juve contract. But the Italian giants were relegated to Serie B at the end of last season following the calciopoli match-fixing scandal, and Buffon is thus deprived of Champ[ions League as well as top-flight domestic football.
He has remained loyal to Juve but the lure of Chelsea may prove irresistible.
Cech's deputy at Chelsea, Carlo Cudicini, was also injured in the same match last weekend, but is expected to be fit to resume playing soon.
However, while Mourinho rates the Italian, he brought in Cech as soon as he arrived at Chelsea, and probably regards Buffon in the same category as the Czech international: one of the world's best.
http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=150605
Both La Stampa of Turin and Corriere dello Sport report that a bid of 50 million euros will be accepted by Juve and see Buffon take his place between the sticks at Stamford Bridge in the New Year.
And Buffon's representative is giving credence to the story, saying that Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will make his move in an attempt to solve his goalkeeping crisis.
First-choice goalkeeper Petr Cech faces a long time out of the game after fracturing his skull against Reading on Saturday, and although the Czech international is said to be making good progress, it is not known exactly how long his recover will take, with warnings from specialists that any premature comeback could be extremely risky in terms of the player's health.
Under the circumstances, Mourinho is said to be anxious to bring in another world-class keeper as soon as possible.
And in England's Sun newspaper, Buffon's representative Paolo Fabbri is quoted as saying that the Premiership champions are interested in 28-year-old Gigi.
"We are aware (Chelsea owner) Roman Abramovich can offer fortunes," he said. "What he needs is to convince the player it's the right move for him. This is not a financial issue, it's about a chance in life.
"I don't think he wants to leave Italy but things can change quickly in football."
Buffon still has four years left on his current Juve contract. But the Italian giants were relegated to Serie B at the end of last season following the calciopoli match-fixing scandal, and Buffon is thus deprived of Champ[ions League as well as top-flight domestic football.
He has remained loyal to Juve but the lure of Chelsea may prove irresistible.
Cech's deputy at Chelsea, Carlo Cudicini, was also injured in the same match last weekend, but is expected to be fit to resume playing soon.
However, while Mourinho rates the Italian, he brought in Cech as soon as he arrived at Chelsea, and probably regards Buffon in the same category as the Czech international: one of the world's best.
http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=150605
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