Chelsea move ahead in race to sign Hulk

Chelsea have moved ahead in the race to sign Porto striker Hulk de Sousa, according to a report.

The Champions League finalists are closing in on a £35 million deal for 25-year-old forward who is hunted by four Premier League clubs, the Daily Mail claimed in an exclusive.

Tottenham were the only club named by agent Theodoro Fonseca, but Chelsea and Manchester City are known to have registered an interest and Liverpool are also thought to be in the fray, the report added.

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Hulk has an £85m release clause written into his contract but Porto president Pinto da Costa is reportedly willing to accept less than half as much.

Chelsea want Hulk to operate in an attacking left-sided role, alongside their other prime target Edinson Cavani of Napoli, but they face competition, after Fonseca said: "In the last week or so, I have been talking to four Premier League clubs about Hulk, and Tottenham are one of them."

Blues set to reap in at least £45m

Chelsea chief executive Ron Gourlay said the London club were due a big financial boost as a result of their "phenomenal" Champions League semi-final win over Barcelona.

The Blues are set for the biggest television cash pay-out for reaching the final of at least £45 million ($73 million, 55.5 million euros) after a dramatic 2-2 draw in Barcelona on Tuesday, where they played most of the match with 10 men after captain John Terry was sent off.

That result gave them a 3-2 aggregate win and a place in the final against either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid.

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The £45 million represents European football governing body UEFA's payments of TV cash alone and studies have shown the clubs can double that income from ticket sales, sponsorship and merchandise.

Manchester United had previously held the record pay-out of Champions League television cash at £43.5m last season, but this year earned only £28m as a result of failing to qualify for the knockout stages.

English clubs have topped Champions League television payments for several years as a result of the sums paid by commercial broadcasters Sky and ITV.

Terry apologises over red card shame

Chelsea captain John Terry apologised for his red card moment of madness against Barcelona on Tuesday that will rule him out of next month's Champions League final.

The Chelsea icon was given his marching orders on 37 minutes of an epic encounter at the Camp Nou which saw the Premier League side fight back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 and clinch a 3-2 aggregate win over the Catalans.

Terry's dismissal for a foul on Alexis Sanchez threatened to trigger a drubbing for Chelsea, who conceded a second goal to Andres Iniesta soon afterwards following Sergio Busquets' opening strike.

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However the veteran defender watched from the bench as goals from Ramires and Fernando Torres sealed a remarkable comeback.

Former England captain Terry admitted however that the result was bittersweet as he will be denied the opportunity to lead Chelsea in Munich.

"Sanchez was darting in behind me. I've seen the replay and it does look bad," Terry told Sky Sports.

"I'm not that type of player to intentionally hurt anyone. I've raised my knee, which I maybe shouldn't have done in hindsight. But hopefully people who know me as a person, as a player... I'm not that type of player.

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"I'm disappointed but delighted for the lads. To come here and play the way they did and get the result they did with 10 men... I feel I've let them down. I've apologised to them and I want to apologise to the fans as well.

"At the time, I was bewildered because I was trying to protect myself a little bit, but looking at it on the replay, I've no complaints. I've let the lads down. They've performed brilliantly, so hopefully this doesn't take it away from the players."
 

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