Chelsea set reasonable price for Nemanja Matic to join Manchester United

'Roman Abramovich has given Matic his blessing.'

Nemanja Matic is reportedly close to leaving Chelsea after the Premier League champions set a reasonable transfer fee. The Londoners are prepared to let the Serbian midfielder leave for £50m and they will not stand in his way if he wants to rejoin old boss Jose Mourinho at Manchester United. Despite claims that Chelsea may have been upset with United swooping for Romelu Lukaku, Abramovich and Blues boss Antonio Conte have secured the services of Alvaro Morata and will allow Matic to move to Old Trafford. According to The Telegraph, Chelsea will allow his switch to Premier League rivals as he has been such a loyal servant during his two stints with the club. Matic has helped Chelsea to two league titles in three seasons but, at 28, is keen for a new challenge. United have given captain Michael Carrick a new contract but Matic could well fill that holding midfield role for the next several years. Asked about Matic earlier this month, Mourinho said:

"I can’t say any word about a player that is a Chelsea player, it’s difficult... He is a Chelsea player and we have to respect the club and manager and owner. "We don’t have our door closed. We are not happy with just Lukaku and [Victor] Lindelof, we need more. We wanted four so I would say 50 per cent of the job is done."

The one fly in this all-too-cosy ointment is the old lady of Juventus. The Bianconeri are also interested in Matic and even though the starting price for Matic may well be £50m, both clubs making bids could drive that up somewhat. Conte is certainly making his mark on the club after only one full season in charge. He is expected to move Diego Costa on and, despite him signing a contract extension, Kurt Zouma is off to Stoke City on a season-long loan deal.