Chelsea could lose out on the signing of midfielder Taison, despite agreeing a fee with Metalist Kharkiv, after Manchester City came in at the last minute with a bid.
The Blues were expected to complete the signing of the Brazilian in the next couple of days after offering £11 million ($18 million) for Taison, which was accepted by the Ukrainian club.
However, City, along with Shakhtar Donetsk and Benfica have shown a late interest in the 24-year-old, leading to Metalist asking for more money from Chelsea.
Taison, who has also reportedly agreed on personal terms with Chelsea, recently admitted his desire to link up with his fellow Brazilian Oscar, who he played with at Internacional.
The Brazilian was also given a tour of Stamford Bridge by the club recently, and his signing was expected to be a mere formality.
"I went to England (some weeks ago) just to take a look," Taison told Diario Popular. "I talked to the president.
"I see Oscar, who I played alongside at Internacional, and I want to play with him again."
The work permit forms were also being prepared as Chelsea look to push through the deal, but now everything has gone haywire with City, especially, proving to be the biggest problem.
Metalist, realizing they have the upper hand, following interest from other clubs, have demanded an extra £2 million ($3.2 million) from the Blues in order to seal the deal.
Chelsea have a couple of days to decide whether they are willing to increase their bid, before Metalist talk to the other interested parties.
Chelsea already have a number of Brazilians in the squad, including Oscar, David Luiz and Ramires, and that might just sway Taison into forcing a move to Stamford Bridge, rather than the confines of the Etihad.
It is still believed Chelsea will eventually beat out the competition, but what was expected to be a smooth process, has become way too complicated for the Blues' liking.
