Could Manchester United’s deal for Romelu Lukaku jeopardise their move for Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic?

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Whilst news of an agreement over the purchase of Romelu Lukaku is undoubtedly good news for Manchester United, the Daily Mail indicate that the deal could have substantial consequences over a move for another of their top targets this summer.

The newspaper claims that Chelsea have been enraged by the move from their Premier League title rivals, and will pull the plug on any potential move for their midfielder Nemanja Matic to Old Trafford. In what was believed to be a £40 million deal, the midfielder was thought to be close to a switch.

The move has never made much sense for Chelsea, given that they would have been parting ways with one of their key players to a direct rival. Given the return of Champions League football to Stamford Bridge, it is hard to see how the Serbian would have gone from regular starter to not being needed in such a short time frame.

However, he was not expected to play such an important role next season. With Monaco’s Tiemoue Bakayoko nearing a move to west London, Matic would fall down the pecking order and would be forced to compete with Cesc Fabregas to even play as a substitute, with N’Golo Kante the king of the Chelsea midfield.

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Having missed out on Romelu Lukaku, Antonio Conte will be determined not to provide Jose Mourinho with extra quality to add to his squad ahead of a Premier League title defence. By selling Matic to the Old Trafford club, they could effectively be providing the service to help Lukaku to score the goals to overtake Chelsea in the title race.

Equally, it could force the Blues to sell. With it now clear that at least £75 million will be required to have any chance of signing Romelu Lukaku, and with 80 million euros (£71 million) required to sign Real Madrid’s Alvaro Morata, according to Spanish outlet AS, Matic could go some way to cover those expenses.

Conte is unlikely to be pleased by the latest transfer developments and may try to cling on to the Serbian midfielder just to prove a point. The symbolic meaning of selling a key player to a rival after they beat them to a top target may be too much to bare for the Blues.

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