Chelsea confident of winning race to sign £70m star

Chelsea are confident of beating Tottenham Hotspur in the race to sign Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi in the summer.

Guehi was a top target for Newcastle United last summer, but they were unable to convince the Eagles with multiple proposals.

Tottenham Hotspur made an ambitious £70m move earlier this month, but they received a similar response from the Palace hierarchy.

It is now reported that Palace are expected to sell Guehi at the end of the season, considering his contract expires in June next year.

Spurs and Newcastle remain in the hunt, but Chelsea are 'confident' of winning the race to re-sign their former academy graduate.

Chelsea have a sell-on clause of 20 percent in the defender's deal. They can sign him for around £56m in the next transfer window.

The Blues believe they have an upper hand over their rivals as Guehi is most likely to favour a reunion over a transfer elsewhere.