Chelsea Transfer News: Latest Alexandre Pato, Antoine Griezmann Rumours

Chelsea reportedly have a deal in place to sign Corinthians forward Alexandre Pato, and the transfer appears to rest on interim Blues boss Guus Hiddink.

The former AC Milan star has long been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge and Sky Sports' Paul Gilmour reports an agreement was made for Chelsea to sign Pato when Jose Mourinho was still the manager.

However, the report indicates Hiddink has reservations about the 26-year-old, no surprise given Pato's chequered fitness history.

Bleacher Report's Dean Jones previously expressed confidence that the deal would go through, but the Dutch manager could yet scupper the move:

Ian Ladyman in the Daily Mail reports a loan move for Pato—who has expressed a desire to play in England—to Chelsea was in the process of being finalised on Sunday night, with a possible permanent switch to follow.

The Blues undoubtedly need further back-up for Diego Costa in the strike department, with Loic Remy and the injured and out-of-form Radamel Falcao hardly representing proper cover.

There must be fears at Chelsea, though, that signing Pato could backfire hugely.

He has been relatively impressive while on loan at Sao Paulo recently, netting 10 league goals in 33 appearances in the Brasileirao, per WhoScored.com.

But a return to European football would be a huge step up for the Brazilian, who has not played on the continent since he left Milan in 2013.

Further to whether he is good enough to perform in the Premier League, questions still remain over Pato's fitness, his career with the the Rossoneri having been ravaged by injury, per ESPN FC's Ben Gladwell.

He still managed a decent goal return at the San Siro—63 in 150 appearances per Gladwell—and Italian football expert Matteo Bonetti believes he could be a good addition to the Chelsea squad:

Elsewhere, Chelsea have been dealt a big blow in their reported pursuit of Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann after the Frenchman hinted at a desire to stay put at the Vicente Calderon.

Per French outlet Telefoot (via Chisanga Malata in the Daily Star), Griezmann outlined his ambitions at Atleti, indicating he is not thinking of moving any time soon: "I am feeling very well at Atletico. This is a big club and I want to achieve great things here. I am ambitious and my goal is to win trophies here."

While this is fantastic news for Atleti, it is an inconvenient revelation for the Blues, who have been heavily linked with the 24-year-old playmaker, per the Mirror's Darren Lewis.

It is unsurprising that Chelsea should covet Griezmann given his impressive return for the Madrid outfit this season and last—a combined 34 goals in 58 La Liga appearances, per WhoScored.com.

But it looks as though he is set to remain at Atleti for the foreseeable future.