CHELSEA hope to sign Tal Ben Haim this week as a peace
offering to Jose Mourinho.
Boltons Israel defender will become a £2million gift from Roman
Abramovich to bury the hatchet with his manager. But Mourinho could
still test the clubs backing by pressing them to sign Blackburn
striker Benni McCarthy.
SunSport revealed yesterday how chief executive Peter Kenyon
brokered a peace pact on Sunday night which included the purchase
of a new defender.
Mourinho responded by saying he would accept his bosses word when
he saw a player sign. Agents moved into action yesterday but the
move was delayed when Chelsea attempted to offer players rather
than cash.
Shaun Wright-Phillips is understood to have refused the offer to go
on loan at Bolton for the rest of the season while boss Sam
Allardyce said no to a swap deal involving Lassana Diarra.
Bolton are determined to get £3m for Ben Haim, 24, who Chelsea want
to feature against Liverpool on Saturday but so far the Blues
have offered £1.25m for a player who is out of contract this
summer.
Mourinho still wants a striker to bolster his Champions League bid.
And McCarthy, 29, a player he once signed for Porto and who helped
him to Euro glory in 2004 is his top target.
The South African ace only cost £2.5m when he moved to Rovers last
summer but his value has rocketed after netting 13 goals.
