Chelsea are closing in on the signing of Jackson Martinez from FC Porto, after holding secret talks with the player's agent in London earlier this week.
According to reports in Portugal and England, Martinez's agent Henrique Pompeo flew to London to discuss a possible transfer in the January transfer window with Roman Abramovich's right-hand woman Marina Granovskaia.
The result of the talks were reportedly positive and Martinez could be a Chelsea player in a little over a month.
However, Jose Mourinho still prefers Martinez's compatriot Radamel Falcao, who only moved to Monaco in the summer.
Chelsea were beaten to the signing of the prolific forward by Monaco, with third-party ownership also complicating matters.
However, some reports have suggested Falcao is not too happy with life in Monaco, and could look to switch allegiances as early as January.
If that turns out to be the case, then Chelsea will be waiting in the wings, although they are likely to receive stiff competition from Real Madrid.
Martinez, like Falcao, has made his name playing in the Portuguese league for Porto, for whom he scored 34 goals last season.
The 27-year-old will certainly add more of a goal threat for Mourinho, who is still not convinced Fernando Torres can keep his scoring boots on, despite some impressive performances this season.
Samuel Eto'o was always a stop-gap measure, while Demba Ba seems to be on his way out, with Romelu Lukaku still considered too young to bear the Chelsea striker's burden.
Falcao would undoubtedly be the preferred option, but if the move for the former Atletico Madrid man is a dead end, then Chelsea and Mourinho are expected to move quickly in completing a deal for Martinez, despite the player being cup-tied in the Champions League, as the Blues gun for Premier League glory.
Chelsea are confident they can agree a deal with Porto for lesser than the £35 million buyout clause inserted in Martinez's contract, according to the Daily Mirror.
Porto, though, are notorious in wringing out every single penny for their players, and it remains to be seen if Chelsea can agree a deal for a considerably lesser price.
