Chelsea report: Blues face competition from Tottenham and Manchester United for Jordan Pickford
Chelsea are considering a swoop for the Everton goalkeeper this summer
Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham are all considering a move for Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, according to reports.
The England international is happy at Everton and was poised to sign a new contract with the club late last year.
The goalkeeper's current deal runs until 2024 and the Toffees were keen to tie him down to fresh terms earlier this season.
The club and the player reached a verbal agreement over a new five-year deal a few months ago, but Pickford is yet to put pen to paper.
The former Sunderland shot-stopper is happy to stay at Goodison Park but The Sun reports that there is a disagreement over pay.
Manchester United and Spurs are supposedly willing to double his current £100,000-per-week wages, while Chelsea would no doubt be happy to meet those demands too.
That leaves Everton in a difficult position, particularly as the club is in a tough financial position at present.
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On the pitch, Frank Lampard's side look set to be involved in another relegation battle, a factor which could also affect the future of players like Pickford.
Everton dropped into the bottom three after a 4-1 thrashing by Brighton last week.
Lampard is now under huge pressure at Goodison ahead of crunch clashes with Southampton and West Ham over the next week and a half.
And for as long as Everton are in danger of dropping a division, Pickford is unlikely to commit his future to the club.
More Chelsea stories
Chelsea are among a number of clubs linked with a move for Brighton's Argentine World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister, but the midfielder says he is in no haste to leave the Seagulls.
The Blues have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Enzo Fernandez, with Benfica refusing to budge on their asking price.
Meanwhile, Celtic's Josip Juranovic and Inter Milan's Denzel Dumfries are said to have been identified as potential right-back targets, with Reece James out injured.
Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).