Chelsea star Mason Mount is currently in transfer limbo with Manchester United yet to submit a fourth bid for the England international. United had a third offer worth £55million rejected by the Blues - who returned with a counter-proposal of £57million plus £8million in add-ons.
Erik ten Hag's side are refusing to improve their offer, which they believe is a fair one, as they now look to alternative targets which include Adrien Rabiot and Moises Caicedo. Despite reports of United withdrawing their interest in the England international last week, football.london understands Erik ten Hag's side should not be ruled out of continuing their pursuit.
Chelsea have still not offered Mount a new deal since February as football.london reported at the end of last month. Mount's camp have become increasingly frustrated with the club's approach to negotiations after verbally agreeing on how the contract should be structured before last year's FIFA World Cup.
The 24-year-old has just 12 months left on his current deal and is willing to run down his contract before leaving on a free transfer next summer if a move to United is not possible this year. Mount has spoken with Mauricio Pochettino and confirmed that he will remain a model professional and report for pre-season training if a deal is not agreed with United, according to The Telegraph.
The Blues are set to travel to the USA for their pre-season tour this summer - starting with a fixture against Wrexham at Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill on Wednesday, July 19. Pochettino's squad are set to meet and begin training next week and Mount is set to be a part of the group.
However, the senior group could be unrecognisable with N'Golo Kante and Kalidou Koulibaly already having left the club. Kai Havertz, Mateo Kovacic, Hakim Ziyech, Edouard Mendy and Ruben Loftus-Cheek could all be absent from pre-season training too as they close in on deals to leave Stamford Bridge.
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Christopher Nkunku is the one new addition to the squad so far, but he could soon be joined by Villarreal striker Nicolas Jackson. The west Londoners are very close to signing Jackson and football.london understands the Senegal international has completed a medical ahead of signing a long-term contract after the Blues triggered the striker's £30m release clause.
Meanwhile, Chelsea remain in talks with Brighton over a move for Moises Caicedo. football.london has been told the midfielder has verbally agreed on personal terms with the Blues but agreeing on a fee with the stubborn Seagulls remains the key problem at the moment.
If Mount does not leave Chelsea this summer, it could bring Bayern Munich back into the race for his signature with Thomas Tuchel still keen on signing the 24-year-old. Bayern would be able to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with Mount from the January transfer window, but many more European clubs could rival the German giants if he stays at Stamford Bridge until the new year.
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