Chelsea Transfer News: Paul Pogba Plan Drawn Up, Latest Sergio Busquets Rumours

Even though Chelsea possess a midfield already bristling with both intricacy and industry, it seems Jose Mourinho remains keen on bolstering the nexus of his team. And there have been reported developments in the Blues’ supposed pursuits of Paul Pogba and Sergio Busquets.

The former of the aforementioned duo is a player for whom the Stamford Bridge club have drawn up a detailed plan to lure from Juventus.

That’s according to Tony Banks of the Express, who claims the Blues will look to balance their books by letting players like Ramires, Andre Schurrle and John Obi Mikel leave the club before launching a £40 million bid for Pogba.

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According to Banks’ piece, the 21-year-old sensation has been on Chelsea’s radar for a while. Here’s a look at why:

While there’s little denying a player of Pogba’s quality would be a superb addition to this Blues team, a premium of £40 million simply won’t be enough to land him. Indeed, recent reports from Turin (h/t Hannah Duncan of Metro) claim Manchester United are set to open the bidding at £61 million for their former midfielder.

Football writer Mina Rzouki thinks Juventus are under no pressure to sell their prize asset:

If a player like Schurrle does leave the Bridge, a like-for-like replacement will be needed. Bleacher Report’s Andy Brassell looks at Fiorentina’s Juan Cuadrado as a potential replacement for him:

Pogba would be a formidable partner for Nemanja Matic at the base of the Blues midfield, but for the time being expect the Frenchman to remain at Juve. While he has all the attributes to go on and become one of the world’s best players, there is still room for refinements in his game and Serie A represents the ideal landscape to further harness these talents.

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Chelsea have also been linked with a move for Barcelona’s Busquets in recent weeks, but it looks as though the midfield anchor is set to pen a new deal that’d see him earn in excess of his current £65,000-a-week salary, according to the Express (h/t David Anwar of Squawka).

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Here’s a look at why the Spanish international is revered as one of the world’s best midfield players:

It’s difficult to see why Barcelona would sanction a sale of a player who remains an unrelentingly important figure in their set-up. Spanish football expert Terry Gibson told talkSPORT (h/t Sam Jordan of Squawka) last month he doesn’t foresee the Catalans cashing in on their midfield pivot:

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I’d be surprised [to see Busquets leave].

He’s a player who has come through the ranks and is an important player, though they do have a promising, young player called Sergi Samper who is very, very similar to Busquets. He’s 19 and he’s had one or two games this season, but I still think that’s too soon [for him to replace Busquets].

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Busquets is a wonderful footballer, but he’s not really the kind of player Chelsea are crying out for. They already have a host of capable manipulators of the ball in their squad and, while the Spaniard admittedly marries those attributes with supreme defensive instincts, Mourinho’s side has little issue when it comes to shutting out the opposition.