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Nemanja Matic back to Chelsea as Kevin De Bruyne seals exit
CHELSEA are hopeful of bringing former player Nemanja Matic back to Stamford Bridge in January as a replacement for the outgoing Kevin De Bruyne.
Jose Mourinho wants to sign Benfica winger Matic - two years after he was offloaded as part of the £21million deal to sign David Luiz.
But Chelsea will have to pay a hefty fee to secure the Serbian international, having had an opening £21m bid rejected.
Benfica want a figure closer to Matic's £37m buy-out clause, with reports suggesting a compromise could be reached at around £30m.
The Blues will partially fund their move for Matic with the £16m sale of Kevin De Bruyne.
De Bruyne is expected to leave Chelsea today to join Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg after falling out-of-favour with Mourinho.