World Football Gossip Roundup: Cristiano Ronaldo, Edinson Cavani, Eden Hazard

Monday's rumor mill is all Chelsea all the time. Well, pretty much.

Are the Blues after Cristiano Ronaldo? Maybe. Do they want Edinson Cavani? Probably.

What about Eden Hazard? Yeah, him too. And Demba Ba? Sure, what the heck.

Oh, and other teams play football too, but you would hardly know it. Anyway, we'll get to them as well, right after we take care of the rumor mill's favorite team.

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Ronaldo (and Higuaín) to Chelsea? Or Is It Cavani and Lavezzi?

According to The Telegraph, Chelsea are "sizing up" an £83.6 million bid for Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and, uh, slightly less super Gonzalo Higuaín. Here's a picture of them leaping into each other's arms.

On the other hand, the Blues are also considering another option: €70 million for Napoli's Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi.

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All their plans are in the early stages, and no contact has been made with clubs. One of Chelsea’s chief priorities with Didier Drogba set to leave at the end of his contract, along with Salomon Kalou and Florent Malouda and — according to sources — possibly even Daniel Sturridge, is a new-look strike force.

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The article also says Chelsea's plans will depend on whoever the next manager is. Yeah, that probably makes sense.

No, It's Just Cavani

The Sun reckons Chelsea really want Edinson Cavani, and that the two parties have already started contract negotiations.

Liverpool and Manchester City are also interested, according to the report.

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Representatives of the 25-year-old Uruguayan were in London on Friday to discuss a proposed £30million transfer to Stamford Bridge, even though Chelsea are currently managerless after the sacking of Andre Villas-Boas.

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Who needs a manager, though? Chelsea have Roman Abramovich and John Terry.

No, It's Eden Hazard

Metro, on the other hand, knows for sure that Chelsea are really after Belgian winger Eden Hazard, who currently plays for Lille in France.

Hazard has also been linked with Arsenal, Tottenham, Manchester United and Manchester City, but Chelsea will apparently buck up for Lille's £34 million evaluation of Hazard.

No, No, No, It's Demba Ba

Express figures everyone else is wrong. Chelsea, it turns out, really want Newcastle's Senegalese striker Demba Ba.

Oh, and Spurs do too.

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Spurs boss Harry Redknapp infuriated the Newcastle hierarchy by publicly revealing that the 26-year-old Senegalese striker had a £7m escape clause in his contract.

They have been in talks over increasing Ba’s wages in exchange for removing the clause. But it is understood that the player’s advisors are keen on another big payday, making the striker vulnerable to another move at the end of the season.

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The fee would be about £7 million, according to the report.

Mertens to Snub Liverpool?

In non-Chelsea gossip, Dries Mertens is set to snub Liverpool for Bayern Munich. That's according to The Sun, a publication that's always correct.

Joking aside, Mertens is a 24-year-old Belgian winger who currently plays for PSV in Holland. He's valued at £7.5 million.

Sinclair Staying Put?

Scott Sinclair, who formerly played for Chelsea but now plays for Swansea City, has no plans to move this summer. That's according to Mirror Football.

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“The boss has brought me in and given me that chance, so my preference would be to stay. Hopefully I can keep playing and get more goals," said Sinclair. “All the links to other clubs for our players just shows you how well we are doing."

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That news will come as a relief to Swansea fans.

Another Suarez for Liverpool?

Sticking with Mirror Football for a moment, Liverpool are reportedly interested in doubling their quota of players named Suarez.

In an exclusive, the tabloid reports that the Reds are interested in 23-year-old Anderlecht striker Matias Suarez. The Argentine is rated at £20 million, but there's no word on whether he enjoys scoring with his hands.

Wijnaldum to Newcastle?

According to the Daily Star, Newcastle are interested in signing up-and-coming Dutch playmaker Georginio Wijnaldum.

Wijnaldum would cost £8-10 million according to the report.

Here's a video of his skills. For that, £8-10 million sounds like a bargain.

Berbatov Snubs Premiership Duo?

Dimitar Berbatov is on the way out at Manchester United, and in the Bulgarian striker's mind, he's heading to a world-beating team.

According to Express, Berbatov, 31, has turned down the advances of Sunderland and Fulham. Something about beggars and choosers comes to mind.