Chelsea line up £20m bid for Newcastle star

Cheick Tiote has been rated at £35 million. (FILE)

Published Sunday, November 20, 2011

By Staff

Chelsea are lining up a £20 million January bid to land Newcastle midfielder Cheick Tiote.

Andres Villas-Boas has made the 25-year-old combative Ivory Coast midfielder, also a target of Manchester United, his top priority.

The Newcastle top brass are very much aware of Chelsea’s interest in Tiote, who has been tracked by the Stamford Bridge regime since Carlo Ancelloti’s reign.

Thus Toon boss Alan Pardew is warning potential suitors that they will have to break the bank to land a player who cost just £3.5 million from Twente Enschede 16 months ago.

“It is going to cost a hell of a lot of money, a hell of a lot of money because we’re in that position now," he said.

He insisted that it would take a mega Andy Carroll-like £35 million deal to prise Tiote away from Newcastle.

The Londoners tried to sign Tiote in January and again showed interest in July.

It may be a case of being third time lucky for Chelsea to get Tiote.

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