Moses told to turn down Chelsea

Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has accused Chelsea of ‘taking the Mickey’ with their bid for Victor Moses, and has made an attempt to persuade the attacker to stay at the club for another year.

The Blues are on a spending spree this summer to bolster their ageing squad for next term, and have identified the Latics forward as their next transfer target.

However, Whelan is eager to keep Moses at the DW Stadium for 12 more months.

“Chelsea would need to get realistic before we would even listen to them. They made a bid at 6pm last night and we turned it down flat,” Whelan confirmed to ESPN.

“Roberto Martinez has brought this player on and he needs at least another year with Roberto to become a top player.

“We have offered him a new contract but it seems the agent, more than the player, wants to move him on – at least that is the impression we are getting.

“It cannot be for the player’s good. Victor Moses needs another year or two before moving to a club like Chelsea.

“He needs games and he won’t be first choice at Chelsea, I wouldn’t have thought.

“We don’t need to sell him with 12 months to go on his contract because he is under 24 so wouldn’t be going on a free transfer.

“Ideally we would like him to sign a new contract, or a club like Chelsea would have to be realistic.

“At the moment, they are taking the Mickey with the bid they’ve made,” he concluded.

By Gareth McKnight