Chelsea are considering using Nemanja Matic as bait to sign Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba in the summer, according to HITC Sport.
The reigning Premier League champions failed in their attempts to sign Pogba last summer and are expected to rekindle their interest at the end of the season with wholesale changes expected to the Chelsea squad.
Italy head coach Antonio Conte is the frontrunner to be named Guus Hiddink’s successor and it is only natural he would be interested in signing the France international, having been the manager that brought him to Juventus from Manchester United in 2012.
However, it has now emerged that Chelsea are hopeful that offering Matic could help sweeten the deal with the Serie A leaders.
Matic, 27, was one of Chelsea’s stand out performers when they cantered to the league title last season but the Serbia international has struggled to reach the same level of performances this time around and has since lost his place in the team to John Obi Mikel.
Of midfielders to have completed at least 25 dribbles in the Premier League this season, only three have done so with a greater success rate than Matic (74.3%).
For more stats on Nemanja Matic, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
