Chelsea hope to secure the Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic as a replacement for the departed Petr Cech later this week despite seeing an opening offer worth around £6m knocked back by the Potteries club.
Begovic, a £3.25m arrival from Portsmouth in 2010 who has entered the final year of his contract at the Britannia Stadium, is keen to move to the champions despite the reality he would effectively be joining as a back-up to Thibaut Courtois.
Stoke still hope to secure nearer £8m for the 28-year-old and are also exploring the possibility of luring a player on a season-loan from Stamford Bridge, though Victor Moses is understood to be reluctant to return to the club where he spent last season.
Talks between Chelsea and Stoke took place on Monday and will continue this week with the Premier League holders hoping a deal can be struck before the weekend. Begovic has emerged above Queens Park Rangers’ Rob Green as their principal target to replace Cech, who completed his move to Arsenal on Monday for a fee of £10m on a four-year contract.
