The Morocco international, Mehdi Benatia is being eyed by some top European clubs after his impressive performances helped Roma finish second in Serie A behind eventual champions Juventus.

Chelsea had moved ahead of Manchester City in the race for his signature by submitting a bid in the region of £18 million + Romelu Lukaku, who is valued at £20 million by Chelsea.  Even Tottenhan Hotspurs and Bayern Munich are interested in the centre-back.

However, Roma have dissuaded any interest in their star player by slapping a staggering £50 million price tag for his services. Roma sporting director Walter Sabatini has revealed he would not sell unless a club offers more than £50 million for his services.

He said, “Benatia is a guy with sound principles – he didn’t want to take a step away from Roma fans or his team-mates. He has been completely coherent; he’s never played for himself, always with and for the team.”

According to Metro, he added, “Personally I think €30m [£25m] is the value of Benatia’s weak foot. If Benatia’s weak foot is worth €30m [£25m] then the total price would be €61m [£50m]. Benatia is not for sale, unless someone comes to us with an offer of €61m [£50m].”