Chelsea have reportedly rejected a second bid from Manchester United for Mason Mount.
Since the closing weeks of the season, it has been apparent that the England international has little intention of remaining at Stamford Bridge.
Numerous attempts at negotiations over a new contract have ended without a resolution, with the academy graduate now in a position where he will enter the final 12 months of his contract.
If reports are to be believed, Mount has already given the green light to a transfer to Old Trafford if the two clubs can reach an agreement over a fee.
United are also said to have tried and failed with an offer in the region of £40m, Chelsea wanting to recoup at least £60m for a player who was not so long ago regarded as a key man under Thomas Tuchel.
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Despite taking such a hard stance, there is an acceptance at Chelsea that they risk putting themselves in a position where they could lose a key asset on a free transfer in 12 months time.
Nevertheless, according to BBC Sport, Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital are not yet at the stage where they feel that they must accept a bid lower than their valuation.
The report claims that the West Londoners have opted to reject a proposal which would have reached £50m if all included add-ons were met in the future.
Although it remains unclear how high United are prepared to go to sign the versatile England international, other reports indicate that there is a willingness on Chelsea's part to reach a compromise.
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At a time when the takeover process involving United is not helping their efforts to sign new players, Chelsea are under pressure to raise enough funds by June 30 in order to fulfil FFP requirements.
Over the past 24 hours, substantial progress has been made on that front, Chelsea in line to generate in the region of £90m through the sales of Mateo Kovacic and Kai Havertz to Manchester City and Arsenal respectively.
Furthermore, agreements are in place for Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly and Hakim Ziyech to sign for different clubs in Saudi Arabia, with it also of huge benefit to Chelsea to get all five players off their wage bill.
Conor Gallagher is being linked with a switch to Borussia Dortmund, while Callum Hudson-Odoi is also being targeted by clubs in the Middle East.
Darren Plant
