Chelsea suffer transfer blow as reported midfield target opts for move to China due to eye-watering £296k-a-week wage packet

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Reported Chelsea target Axel Witsel is set to reject interest from the Blues and become the next big-name to move to the Chinese Super League, report Football Italia.

Earlier this week, The Sun reported that Antonio Conte was desperate to bring Witsel to Stamford Bridge. The tabloid believed that Chelsea were considering using some of the £60 million raised by the sale of Oscar to Shanghai SIPG to bankroll a move for the Belgian midfield general. They noted at the time that it was Witsel’s preference to join Serie A giants Juventus.

It appears though, like Oscar, Witsel has been tempted by the money that China has to offer.

Football Italia cite several Italian reports in revealing that Witsel has offers from both Shanghai SIPG or Tianjin Quanjian, and could be set to pocket an eye-watering £296,000-a-week. A move to China would also be preferable for the Belgian’s current side Zenit, as they could command a £17 million fee from a Chinese side opposed to the £5 million they had on the table from Juventus.

There appears to be no end in sight to the Chinese football revolution.

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