Chelsea Transfer News: Sami Khedira Latest from Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti

Jose Mourinho believes his defensive midfield options are "stable," suggesting Chelsea's potential move for Real Madrid star Sami Khedira is unlikely to go ahead.

The Portuguese manager spoke during the pre-match presser ahead of his side's Champions League clash with Maribor.

It was previously reported that Manchester United will offer Khedira in the region of £200,000 per week to stop him from securing a move to Chelsea or Arsenal, per Bruce Archer of the Daily Star.

Having successfully utilised Nemanja Matic for the majority of the current campaign, Mourinho suggested he already has enough numbers to shuffle his pack without it affecting the team too much, per the Blues' official Twitter account:

Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti recently revealed he isn't willing to let Khedira leave in January, anyway.

"We have until June to reach an agreement with him," said the Italian, per Simon Johnson of the London Evening Standard. "If he wants to sign an extension, the club will renew him. If not, he will leave the team at the end of the season." 

Spanish football expert Guillem Balague told B/R UK's Ryan Bailey Chelsea could be Khedira's first choice, regardless:

Should Khedira remain until the summer, it's highly likely he will receive inflated wages due to the lack of transfer fee involved. One has to question whether Madrid would allow him to walk for free if a transfer came in, but it doesn't seem to be an idea worth entertaining for Mourinho.

This model would suit United, who need to spend big in order to quickly improve, as noted by B/R UK's Rob Blanchette:

Alongside Matic, John Obi Mikel and the versatile Nathan Ake, Mourinho still has Ramires at his disposal. Aside from the aforementioned Serbian, these players have just two Premier League starts between them this season, per WhoScored.com.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

Mourinho would likely need to get rid of two midfielders to facilitate Khedira's arrival and be able to offer the kind of funds United are said to be preparing. The boss has worked avidly over the last year to sell unneeded talent—Kevin De Bruyne, Juan Mata and David Luiz, to name a few—replacing them with top-quality, less expensive alternatives. It would be foolish to undo this hard work with a luxury signing.

Matic is an example of Mourinho's diligence working excellently, while Mohamed Salah can already be considered surplus to requirements. It is a risk for Mourinho to determine which side Khedira would fall on, despite having enjoyed an excellent working relationship with the German during his time in charge of Madrid.