Last Updated: Sun, 30 Dec 2012 11:57
Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are primed to make Ashley Cole tempting offers to leave Chelsea in the summer.
Both clubs can table their terms next week when the 32-year-old England international officially falls into the final six months of his Stamford Bridge contract.
But Cole may decide to keep his options open, with title rivals Manchester City and Manchester United also monitoring the situation.
Cole is allowed to speak to foreign clubs from Tuesday and Real and PSG will not waste any time in beginning negotiations.
The left-back could even sign a pre-contract agreement with an overseas club in January, but he has not yet resigned himself to leaving Stamford Bridge and will consider an offer if Chelsea produce a U-turn and better the one-year extension that was rejected.
Real and PSG are both willing to give Cole a three-year contract and uncertainty over the futures of managers Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti is not thought to present a major obstacle.
Have you an opinion on this story? Put your money where your mouth is and claim a free £25 bet.
