Chelsea could use Torres as bait to attract La Liga star

Chelsea look certain to be busy in the transfer window this summer, with Andre Villas-Boas keen to add quality to a squad whose Premier League title bid is all but over before it began in his maiden season at the club.

Indeed, Champions League glory looks as though it could be the only chance of salvation of a season in which so much was expected of Villas-Boas and his team.

Now, it seems the Portuguese manager is looking to a player he is very familiar with to spark a resurgence at Stamford Bridge.

Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao, who smashed 17 goals in just 14 Europa League appearances under the tutelage of Villas-Boas for Porto last season, is believed to be top of the young coach’s wish-list, as he aims to freshen up his front-line.

A touted fee of £50m could prove a stumbling block, but it is believed that the Chelsea chief would be willing to offer Fernando Torres to his former club in part-exchange, so great is his desire to land a man who was so pivotal to his double-winning Porto outfit.

Scouts from the London club have attended almost every Atletico game for the past three months, as they track the progress of a man who could potentially be one of the biggest signings in the club’s history.

Villas-Boas’ attentions are not focused solely on Falcao however.

Amidst Daniel Sturridge’s pleas to operate more centrally in the Chelsea set-up, the Blues boss is keen on bringing Juventus winger Milos Krasic to the club, while his interest in Shakhtar Donetsk winger Willian remains peaked.

With each of these leading European talents certain to command excessive transfer fees, it remains to be seen which of the players will end up at Stamford Bridge in the summer.

It does however seem certain that Colombian forward Falcao would be a priority purchase for Andre Villas-Boas.