Chelsea rule out paying more than £30m for Neymar – report

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Chelsea have ruled out bidding more than £30 million for Santos striker Neymar, paving the way for Real Madrid to match the Brazilian club’s £40m asking price.

Neymar is one of the most highly rated prospects in world football, and Chelsea and Real Madrid have both shown a long-term interest in the player – though it is now believed the Premier League club could be set to pull out of the running for the Brazil international, according to The Sun.

The Blues have spent big in recent times – splashing out around £75m on deals for David Luiz and Fernando Torres in last January’s transfer window – but they are apparently refusing to meet the demands of Santos.

The newspaper quotes a club source as saying: “Jose Mourinho, the Real Madrid coach is ready to pay the asking price but Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich thinks £30m is a fair price for someone who’s only 19 and has had injury problems.

“So it looks like Mourinho has got his man.”

The 19-year-old striker is expected to move on this summer and despite a move to Chelsea long being mooted it now appears that Abramovich will set his sights elsewhere, with Anderlecht striker Romelu Lukaka reportedly the preferred target.