Chelsea Transfer News: Oscar Targeted by Staggering China Bid, Latest Rumours

Chelsea star Oscar is reportedly being targeted by Chinese club Jiangsu Suning, who will return for the Brazilian playmaker in the summer having made a huge January bid for him. 

According to Antony Kastrinakis in the Sun, Jiangsu Suning recently had a £57.5 million bid for Oscar rejected by the Blues, but they have not yet given up hope of signing him at the end of the season.

The 24-year-old's contract at Stamford Bridge runs until 2019, but the spendthrift Chinese outfit clearly don't see that as an obstacle in their attempt to add Oscar to their squad to join recent high-profile signings Ramires and Alex Teixeira, the latter of which was confirmed on Friday.

Chelsea's rejection of Jiangsu's initial huge bid is a fairly definitive statement that they want to keep Oscar at the club.

Though he has not been an ever-present in the Blues first team this season, he has started 15 of their 24 Premier League games and is still a vital attacking outlet, per WhoScored.com.

He netted a hat-trick in Chelsea's 5-1 drubbing of MK Dons in the FA Cup last weekend, per Opta:

His continued good form could be vital for the west London club in the second half of the season as, while they have long been out of the title race, the FA Cup and Champions League are still up for grabs.

However, Chelsea could surely be persuaded to sell Oscar in the summer if Jiangsu return with an offer in excess of £60 million.

Chinese clubs have shown recently that they are not afraid to splash huge amounts of cash, and former Chelsea target Ezequiel Lavezzi looks set to be the next star making his way to the Far East, per Bleacher Report's Dean Jones:

With Chelsea set to install a new manager at the end of the season—current boss Guus Hiddink is only at Stamford Bridge on an interim basis—no player has a guaranteed future with the Blues.

If the new boss decides Oscar is expendable, then Jiangsu could well get their man in the summer. 

A £60 million offer would be very tempting as, while Oscar is undoubtedly a talented player, Chelsea could arguably bring in someone better with such a transfer fee.

Jiangsu Suning have proved themselves as genuine players in the transfer market in recent days, and if they do buy Oscar in the summer, it would be further proof of China's increasing influence in the world game.