Clubs fight over Romelu Lukaku – ‘a young Drogba’

It looks like it could be pistols at dawn as far as Romelu Lukaku is concerned, with the revelation that the 17-year-old striker is wanted by Tottenham, Everton and Chelsea. Arsenal have also not discounted the possibility that they might try and lure the Belgian sensation to the Emirates in the summer, despite the fact that Anderlecht are asking £25m for the callow youth.

According to Goal.com, Chelsea have been "in talks" to bring Lukaku to the Bridge in recent weeks, with Anderlecht initially hoping a deal would be signed and sealed by the end of March so they can crack on with plans to build a new stadium. That proposed deal has now apparently been shot down, with Chelsea reluctant to splash the cash on a 17-year-old just a couple of months after paying £50m for Liverpool flop Fernando Torres.

Chelsea's waning interest has gone down well with both Spurs and Everton, the former considered the most likely to meet Anderlecht's asking price. But why the clamour to sign a relatively untested frontman?

Lukaku has been likened to a young Didier Drogba and is considered one of Europe's most promising talents. In response to the rumours surrounding Lukaku, Anderlecht general manager Herman van Holsbeeck told Goal.com: "There is a lot of interest in Romelu. Every big club wants him. At this moment we do not want to sell him. In a few months we can talk about this situation."

Italian radio report that Italian club Udinese have informed Manchester United that if they want Alexis Sanchez then they're going to have to fight for him. The 22-year-old Chilean winger has been on Alex Ferguson's wish list for months – though a number of other European clubs are also interested in the twinkle-toed South American – but Udinese see Sanchez as the linchpin of their side for years to come.

"We want to keep him for another year," Udinese president Giampaolo Pozzo told Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli. "He is very young and belongs to us - we want to build a team around him."

Another highly sought-after young blood is Fabio Coentrao, the versatile Benfica player comfortable at left-back or on the wing. Portuguese sports rag A Bola reports that Chelsea and Manchester City have been tracking the 23-year-old for a while, but now it appears Bayern Munich have muscled their way into the action like a German tourist desperate to secure the best chair by the pool. Apparently Bayern have been in touch with Benfica to discuss the asking price and have allegedly made a first offer of £25m for Coentrao, £5m less than the Portuguese club would like.

You might remember that on Tuesday we reported that Napoli striker Edinson Cavani was at the centre of a tug of war between Arsenal and Newcastle. Well, it now seems that they're not the only clubs to be making eyes at the Uruguay international. Cavani's agent has confirmed that Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has also been sniffing around.

"Mourinho, through his agent Jorge Mendes, has asked about the availability of Cavani," said Claudio Ancelucci, though he refused to elaborate and, of course, it was in no way an attempt to force up his client's market value. ·