Chelsea Transfer News: Raphael Varane Interest and Top Winter Rumours

Latest speculation suggests that not only will Jose Mourinho bid to sign former Real Madrid charge Raphael Varane this winter, but the Portuguese is eyeing a triple Chelsea raid on Jese Rodriguez and Alvaro Arbeloa, too.

Clearly hoping to take advantage of the rotation policy at his former club, Mourinho is hoping to spend £35 million on Varane and Jese, according to the Express (h/t the Guardian's Barry Glendenning).

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The Blues already have Kurt Zouma surging through their ranks as a potential heir to John Terry's throne, but it appears Mourinho is eager to give his defence a youthful charge with Varane.

As Liam Twomey of Goal points out, the tactician has voiced his intentions not to conclude any business this winter, but his stance would appear to have changed of late:

That turnaround is undoubtedly influenced by the club recently dropping points and falling within range of their Premier League peers, leaving Mourinho yearning for increased depth at Stamford Bridge.

Varane has quickly risen to become one of the most respected young centre-backs in Europe, starring for France at last year's 2014 World Cup and already winning huge honours with Los Merengues.

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However, Sergio Ramos and Pepe remain the first-choice candidates in central defence for Carlo Ancelotti, leaving Varane in a position of some uncertainty with regard to where he stands with the club.

Back in October, Mourinho spoke to French programme Telefoot (h/t Goal's Twomey), telling of his admiration for Varane but adding that Los Blancos would never sell: "I like Varane, but everybody knows that he will stay at Real Madrid. France has a lot of good players like Varane, Pogba, Benzema and Lloris. They can win Euro 2016. I have a lot of respect for Deschamps. In the World Cup, we saw a great French team."

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Jese is now said to be wanted as part of the deal, but Mourinho's greed doesn't stop there, with Arbeloa now also in his sights.

So says the Express (h/t Telegraph), who claims the full-back—out of contract with Real this summer—is being sought after by his former boss, as well as Arsenal and former club Liverpool.

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Branislav Ivanovic has reigned as Mourinho's first-choice right-back for two seasons now, but having another experienced option in the position wouldn't hurt Chelsea's chances.

However, Bleacher Report's Guillem Balague says Real aren't looking to let anyone leave this winter, Arbeloa included:

Chelsea would have a difficult time on their hands luring any one of the three aforementioned players from the Bernabeu, never mind nabbing all three.

Mourinho may well have set his sights high in attempting to steal from his former club's ranks, but the Madrid giants will undoubtedly prove to be tough negotiators.