Manchester City are reportedly hoping to capitalise on Chelsea's current ownership turmoil with a move for one of their key assets...
What's the word?
According to the Sun, Thomas Tuchel's side are fearful of losing first-team star Mason Mount to one of their top-flight rivals - namely City or Liverpool - due to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the club.
The Blues have been unable to hand out new contracts due to the sanctions placed on the club as a result of now disqualified owner Roman Abramovich's reported links to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with the Englishman currently one of the Stamford Bridge outfit's lowest earners on £76k-per-week.
With just two years remaining on his existing deal, his current side are fearful that if they cannot agree to a new long-term deal in the coming months then the current title contenders could pounce, with Pep Guardiola believed to be an 'admirer' of the 23-year-old.
The report does suggest that the league leaders would not be in a position to bid this summer, although could try to secure his services if a new contract is not signed by the autumn.
The next De Bruyne?
It is a mouthwatering prospect just thinking about the 27-cap international plying his trade at the Etihad, with the Portsmouth-born playmaker seemingly the ideal heir to the club's current talisman, Kevin De Bruyne.
While he may still have some way to go to match the quality and consistency of a man who holds the joint Premier League record for most assists in a single campaign (20), Mount is already showing signs of having the talent needed to be City's chief creator.
He has already proven his worth against Guardiola's side in recent times, teeing up Kai Havertz for the matchwinning goal in last season's Champions League final with a sumptuous threaded pass, the ball having been the type which most have come to expect from the man he could replace, De Bruyne.
The current campaign has proven particularly eye-catching for the Blues academy graduate, as he has registered a mightily impressive haul of 27 goals and assists in all competitions, including 19 goal contributions in the top-flight alone.
Such form has unsurprisingly ensured he is Chelsea's top-ranked player in the league this season, according to SofaScore, with an average match rating of 7.37 across his 30 outings, while he has also created nine big chances so far this term - the eighth-best in the division.
One of those above him is unsurprisingly City's Belgian superstar, with the 30-year-old creating 11 big chances thus far, while he has also made 27 goal contributions of his own this term across all fronts, including 18 goals and assists in the league.
That almost identical record between the two men this season illustrates not only why Mount - who has been dubbed the "full package" by Tuchel and "magic" by Nizaar Kinsella - is so highly-rated, but also why he can be the man to fill the shoes of the man currently pulling the strings for the Cityzens.
De Bruyne himself, of course, traded life in London for life in Manchester - via a brief stint in Wolfsburg - with the current Blues man potentially set to follow suit in the near future.
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