New Manchester United head coach Jose Mourinho is reportedly desiring a reunion with his former Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas at the Old Trafford next season if Antonio Conte would see the Spanish footballer as a surplus for his requirements at the Stamford Bridge this summer.
Fabregas' future at Chelsea is said to be unsure under Conte as the new Blues manager is allegedly set to acquire four big-name players this offseason that plays in the same position as the former Arsenal and Barcelona midfielder.
With that, rumors abound that Mourinho is ready to salvage his former ward if ever Conte does release him from his current roster.
Conte is said to be closing in to sign Leicester City midfielder N'Golo Kanté and is still in the race for Roma's Radja Nainggolan, according to recent reports. Aside from the two, the former Italy national team coach is also targeting Valencia's Andre Gomes and Sporting CP's Joao Mario.
All four players play the same position as Fabregas and so if any of the abovementioned deals push through then the 29-year-old Spaniard's future at the Bridge is going to be bleak.
The Daily Mirror noted that the newly-appointed Chelsea manager "wants more steel and energy in the middle of the park and that could see Fabregas - a favorite of the Special One - become surplus to requirements for the Blues".
Fabregas, who came from Barcelona in the summer of 2014 for £27 million, was part of Mourinho's title-winning group at Chelsea during the 2014-2015 season and also the disappointing team that defended the Premier League trophy last season before the coach was sacked last December.
In two seasons with the Fulham-based club, Fabregas had developed a strong relationship with the Portuguese mentor even today that the latter is now the chief bench tactician at the Old Trafford.
Caught Offside noted that Fabregas had been a transfer target by the Red Devils "back in 2013" when David Moyes had just replaced Sir Alex Ferguson as the manager of the club, but the Scottish boss was not able to lure him away from Barça at that time.
Fabregas had scored 11 goals in a total of 94 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea since he was acquired be the Pensioners two seasons ago.