London: Chelsea is looking set to beat Tottenham Hotspurs, which is managed by their former manager Andrea Villas-Boas, in race to sign highly-rated Brazilian midfielder Oscar in a deal understood to be worth more than 22 million pounds.
Spurs had hoped to steal in ahead of some of Europe’s leading clubs last week to secure the 20 year-old from his club Internacional.
However, Chelsea is now trying to hijack the deal and is expected to be successful.
If Chelsea succeeds to sign Oscar, it would come as a big blow to Villas-Boas who had identified Oscar as a key signing during his ill-fated regime at Stamford Bridge.
Oscar has already earned five senior caps for Brazil and has also been included in his country’s squad for London 2012, a newspaper reports.
He will join several other Brazilians at Chelsea, including Ramires, David Luiz and Lucas Piazón.
His arrival will be another significant sign that Chelsea is not only determined to improve their squad but also working hard to reduce the average age.
ANI
First Published: Tuesday, July 10, 2012, 18:40