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Talks held: Chelsea told to pay £87m as they aim to beat Man Utd & Liverpool to major transfer

Originally posted on Caught Offside | By Mark Brus | Last updated 1/3/24

Chelsea are reportedly targeting the potential transfer of talented young Benfica defender Antonio Silva, who is also on the radar of both Manchester United and Liverpool.

The 20-year-old looks to have all the attributes to become one of the top centre-backs in Europe in the next few years, and it seems inevitable we’ll see him secure a big move before too long.

Chelsea are said to have already held talks over signing Silva from Benfica, but it’s proving difficult as they demand his £87million release clause be paid in full, according to the Sun.

This follows some efforts by Chelsea to pay a bit lower than that and include Armando Broja in the deal, but that looks like an unlikely route to success for them.

Silva has also previously been linked with Liverpool by our LFC columnist Neil Jones, while Fabrizio Romano has also talked up Man Utd as a potential destination for the Portugal international.

Chelsea aren’t at their best at the moment, which might lead Silva to consider other options, with league leaders Liverpool surely a far more tempting project for an up-and-coming player like him.

United are also a long way from where they’d ideally want to be, but will surely be pushing for big signings like this since Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s purchase of a stake in the club.

This article first appeared on Caught Offside and was syndicated with permission.

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