Chelsea have given Nemanja Matic permission to join Diego Costa in missing their tour of China and Singapore as the Serbia midfielder attempts to smooth his departure from the club.
Antonio Conte’s squad leave for Beijing on Monday, with the decision to omit Matic an indication a move from Stamford Bridge is imminent. Juventus and Internazionale have expressed interest in signing the 28-year-old, with Manchester United’s pursuit of the player to be resisted by Chelsea after Romelu Lukaku’s decision to move to Old Trafford.
Matic has been at Cobham this week but has largely trained on his own having made clear his desire to leave the club with which he has won two Premier League titles in three seasons. Talks over a new contract have stalled over recent months and his preference would have been a reunion with José Mourinho at United, but Juve may now prove the easiest deal to negotiate.
Chelsea, who will be seeking around £40m for Matic, have been in regular talks with the Italian champions over their Brazil defender Alex Sandro, with Matic's future expected also to be up for discussion. Matic is due to speak with the Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia in the hope a deal can be reached, with the club more willing to sanction the sale now Tiémoué Bakayoko has joined from Monaco for £39.7m subject to a medical.
The France international was at Cobham on Friday completing his medical, though he may not be able to represent the first team until September as he continues his rehabilitation from keyhole surgery on a knee problem.
Costa, who was made aware he is not in Chelsea’s plans via a text message from Conte last month, remains in Brazil having been permitted to stay away from the team’s Surrey base. Talks are continuing to take the striker back to Atlético Madrid, where he would not be able to play until January 2018 and the expiry of a transfer ban, in the hope a compromise can be reached over a fee. The Premier League winners are targeting Real Madrid’s Álvaro Morata as a replacement and are also interested in the Real defender Danilo.
Chelsea have sold Nathaniel Chalobah to Watford for £5.5m and will also leave Kurt Zouma out of their touring squad in anticipation of his season-long loan move to Stoke City. Eden Hazard is expected to continue his rehabilitation from ankle surgery in London.
