Fulham tonight put a prohibitive £18 million price tag on the head of Louis Saha as Chelsea joined Manchester United in the chase for the French forward.
Fulham insist reports their star striker is poised to join United for £9.8 million are without foundation. And the transfer saga stepped up today when Fulham sources said Chelsea have "expressed an interest" in Saha.
No "serious negotiations" have taken place with Chelsea and nor has Saha been given permission to talk to any club but Fulham rate the striker at £18 million - almost a tenfold increase on the £2.1 million they paid Metz for him four years ago.
And, even for Chelsea, that would represent an enormous outlay and a new transfer record, eclipsing the £17 million paid to Blackburn for Republic of Ireland international Damien Duff in the summer.
Fulham are aware their valuation must be negotiable if they choose to sell Saha but they insist United's £8 million fee, rejected last week, and even a genuine £9.8 million offer, would be too low.
A Fulham spokesman said: "There has been no fresh bid from Manchester United. There is no truth in the story at all."
United insiders believe Fulham are trying to establish Saha's market value, even though manager Chris Coleman does not want to lose the player.
PA