The Premier League champions pursued the Colombian superstar throughout the summer transfer window and are confident of facilitating a deal with Atletico Madrid in January.
Falcao scored an amazing hat-trick against Chelsea in the Supercup. He could be playing for Man city next January.
Manchester City are leading Chelsea in the race to sign Atletico Madrid star Radamel Falcao for £47 million in January.
The Premier League champions tried to sign Falcao in the summer and are willing to pay a record fee for the Colombian in the New Year, with Portuguese super agent Jorge Mendes attempting to broker the move.
A summer move failed to materialise as the club were unable to offload Edin Dzeko despite interest from AC Milan and Bayern Munich, while Carlos Tevez’s return to form saw him return to favour under Roberto Mancini.
Chelsea are also huge admirers of Falcao, who has scored 42 goals in 53 appearances for Atletico Madrid including a stunning hat-trick against the Blues in his side’s Uefa Supercup victory in Monaco last Friday.
But City are confident of landing their man after a 12-month long pursuit with Atletico’s recent financial struggles ensuring they must listen to big-money offers for their star player.
szólj hozzá: Atletico Madrid v Chelsea 4:1 GOAL HIGHLIGHTS
Falcao has a €60m (£47m) release clause in his Atletico Madrid contract and City believe their strong relationship with the Spanish club will help to facilitate a deal.
City eased Atletico’s financial difficulties last year by paying £38m to sign Sergio Aguero, from under the noses of their great rivals Real Madrid, with most of the transfer fee paid up-front.
And Roberto Mancini will be given the funds to land a marquee signing in January despite the club’s conscious efforts to balance the books and comply with Uefa’s financial fair play rules.
In an interview with Goal.com last week Falcao insisted the Premier League was not a “dream” of his but the 26-year-old’s father has suggested that the Colombian is very likely to complete a switch to the Premier League in January – and City sources say the club will pull out all the stops to land their man.
When asked whether a move to England could be on the cards for his son in the next transfer window, Falcao senior said: “Yes, that chance is very big.”
