Chelsea renew chase for £10m target Savio

Chelsea are making a renewed £10m bid to sign Savio, Real Madrid's Brazilian striker. Their managing director, Colin Hutchinson, has flown to Spain to make the new offer in person to officials at the Spanish club.

Chelsea are making a renewed £10m bid to sign Savio, Real Madrid's Brazilian striker. Their managing director, Colin Hutchinson, has flown to Spain to make the new offer in person to officials at the Spanish club.

The new Chelsea coach, Claudio Ranieri, is hoping he can persuade Savio to join the club despite the player's earlier decision to stay in Spain having consulted, among others, Chelsea's Christian Panucci.

Ranieri feels he needs a left-sided player after a frustrating search round Europe for alternatives. Real have encouraged Chelsea to bid again, although they are holding out for £11m. However the fee may not be the major obstacle, as Savio is thought to consider Premiership football too physical for him.

Debt-laden Real are in desperate need of the money, having failed to sell Steve McManaman, but they could persuade Savio to go by giving him a cut of the transfer profits. The player could also double his wages in London.

The Middlesbrough manager, Bryan Robson, has been told St-Etienne's Cameroon international defender Lucien Mettomo is available for £4.5m. But there was a twist yesterday when St-Etienne parted company with their coach, Robert Nouzaret, with whom Mettomo had been in dispute.

Despite this development, Robson has been assured Mettomo is still available. However, a St-Etienne spokesman only added to the uncertainty, saying: "It may change things. Mettomo might want to stay, I don't know."