Chelsea Transfer News: Paul Pogba Move Supported by Nicolas Anelka, Pepe Rumours

Ex-Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka has urged compatriot Paul Pogba to make Chelsea his next destination, while the Blues have also received a boost in their hopes of landing Real Madrid centre-back Pepe.

Juventus talisman Pogba has received interest from some of Europe's biggest clubs over the past year, and Anelka spoke to France Football (h/t Anthony Chapman of the Daily Express), suggesting he follow his lead and move to Stamford Bridge:

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Paul technically knows everything and he has the qualities to play anywhere. My preference is for him to join Chelsea, who have very strong players and the financial power of [Roman] Abramovich. Also Real Madrid, who are one of the biggest clubs in the world, if not the greatest. He would grow a lot under Carlo Ancelotti.

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Anelka calls Real Madrid another of his former clubs and Los Merengues would undoubtedly be capable of rivalling any other outfit in their pursuit of arguably the fastest-rising talent in football.

Chapman cites Pogba's agent, Mino Raiola, in stating that it could take a world-record fee in order for Juve to sell their star, and Tancredi Palmeri of beIN Sports believes the French international will be on the move this summer:

Should he become available, Pogba will assuredly draw offers from most European powerhouses, Palmeri also noting that former club Manchester United are sure to contend:

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho already possesses one of the continent's finest central midfield pairings, with Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic emerging as a finely weighted duo during the club's rise to the Premier League summit.

Pogba's exit from Turin is no sure thing, though. Bianconeri striker Alvaro Morata was quoted this week by Spanish newspaper AS (h/t Goal.com), stating that team-mate Pogba is happy in his current setting: "Could Pogba go to Madrid? He's young and he's among the best in the world, but he's happy at Juventus."

A fee of more than £80 million will always be considered gargantuan, but Mourinho would need to have intentions of starting the box-to-box star in order to justify spending such an extravagant amount.

As such, it would seem the Portuguese could be forced to alter tactics, either switching to a three-man core in central midfield or perhaps dropping Oscar from his hub closer to the attack.

Massimiliano Allegri's men are once again on form to defend their Scudetto title, something which David Amoyal of GianlucaDiMarzio.com has attributed in some capacity to the success of Pogba:

A much more cost-effective pursuit for the west Londoners would be that of Real's Pepe as the Daily Star's Jamie Anderson reports Carlo Ancelotti could be forced to sell one of his centre-back stars this summer.

Raphael Varane has been waiting in Los Blancos' wings as one of the continent's most promising defenders, but it's alleged a contract extension for Pepe could force the young Frenchman out of the Bernabeu.

Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images

Pepe's current deal is set to expire at the end of the 2015-16 campaign, but he continues to display form good enough to keep Varane on the bench, intensifying speculation one may leave the club this summer.

Anderson quotes Varane as having recently commented on his frustrations in Madrid, saying: "The competition with Pepe is not in my best interests, and it won't be in the future. The objective is to be on the pitch."

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At 31 years of age, Pepe doesn't represent the better investment in the long term, but his form has been pivotal to recent successes alongside Sergio Ramos.

Having recently sat on the sidelines with injury, the Portuguese international will make his return to Real's lineup in this week's Champions League clash against Schalke, with Ancelotti quoted by Spanish newspaper AS:

Mourinho knows Pepe's talent well, having worked with his countryman during his time at the Bernabeu and having also been the man who brought Varane to Spain.

The Blues boss may eye either Champions League winner as a potential successor to the ageing John Terry, one with many years to run in his career and the other promising to bring an instant impact of the elite calibre.