Chelsea deny making bid for Hulk

By ESPN staff
Chelsea have denied making a bid for striker Hulk due to Porto's inflated asking price, according to ESPN sources.

GettyImagesHulk has won seven major trophies in his four years at Porto, including this season's league title

Wealthy Russian club Zenit St Petersburg have been reported to offer £40 million for the Brazilian, which does not meet the Portuguese outfit's valuation of their main asset. "I have not heard about a bid from Zenit, but at £40 million I cannot see Porto selling," an ESPN source stated on Wednesday.
"I know Chelsea have been linked with Hulk all summer, in fact all year. But Chelsea have never negotiated. Chelsea know the price and are not prepared to even negotiate around those sort of figures." Porto will only sell for a reported £60 million, pricing most suitors out of the market. While his buy-out clause is set at £85 million, which shows the limited flexibility of the Portuguese outfit. If Porto are to sell Hulk, they will need to massively decrease the Brazilian's valuation to entice Chelsea to the negotiation table, but it seems unlikely they are willing to allow the striker to depart the club.