Chelsea and Manchester United have agreed a fee of £40m for Juan Mata but the deal is not ready to be completed.
The Guardian claims the two Premier League clubs have settled on a transfer fee for the Spain international but no formal bid has been made by United.
To push through the transfer Mata will have to tell Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho directly that he wants to leave Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea expect the situation to develop quickly, the newspaper adds, since there is little more than a week remaining of the winter transfer window.
Mata has been out of favour under Mourinho all season and has not played since New Year’s Day.
Chelsea are not eager to sell Mata and especially not to a domestic rival, but the player is understood to be keen to play regularly between now and the end of the season.
Mata wants to safeguard his place in the Spain squad ahead of the summer’s World Cup.
Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid have made approaches to take Mata on loan for the rest of the season, the Guardian reveals.
The decision on whether or not to sell Mata to United will rest with Mourinho. Chelsea had hoped to put off the conversation regarding Mata’s future until the summer as they will be unable to find a replacement of comparable quality.
Mata’s father and agent was initially willing to wait until the summer in an effort to entice Barcelona into bidding for his son, but United’s interest means Mata could move this month.
