Chelsea Transfer Rumor: Blues Set to Bring in £20M Everton Youngster in January?

If rumors are to be believed, London club Chelsea are planning to launch an ambitious January bid for Premiership rivals Everton midfielder Jack Rodwell.

According to a Daily Mail report, Blues boss Andre Villas-Boas has identified Rodwell, 20, as the first major player he wants to bring to rebuild his Chelsea team and is also confident that he will land the Everton midfielder next month.

Sources have suggested that Everton have given up all hopes of retaining Rodwell and that a move to West London may happen next month. However, Chelsea will know that luring the player to Stamford Bridge will be tough as title rivals Manchester United are also said to be keen on the England international. United boss Sir Alex Ferguson's burning need to bring in a defensive midfielder may see him entering a bidding war for the player.

Everton boss David Moyes was already without a transfer fund in the summer and now it's been speculated that any further sale of Everton stars wouldn't necessarily lead to the boss being able to strengthen his small squad, which could even be problematic considering his future with the club. The Goodison Park fans may also be enraged by this continuous selling of players, feeling that the club is lacking ambition.

Some at Goodison Park already believe that Rodwell is Stamford Bridge-bound and have started questioning the fact if he will ever again appear in an Everton shirt.

Although it has been reported that Everton will demand a fee of around £20 million for the youngster following his breakthrough on the international stage, Chelsea are said to start the bidding near £12 million, according to a Tribalfootball report.