Chelsea are hoping the lure of a London lifestyle could be their trump card as they prepare a massive financial package to beat Manchester City to Pep Guardiola.

Roman Abramovich is refusing to give up on Guardiola - who walked away from a deal to move to Chelsea in 2012 - after he confirmed that he is leaving Bayern Munich.

City are favourites to land the 44-year-old Spaniard, but Chelsea’s billionaire owner is not only willing to make him the world’s highest paid manager but also to fund a massive overhaul of the playing staff.

He is determined to make a statement following the dismissal of Jose Mourinho - the most successful manager in Chelsea history - by landing the biggest name of all.

But they know it will not only be cash that makes the difference and they believe that Guardiola’s wife Cristina Serra has a preference to live in the capital when they leave Munich at the end of his contract with the German club.

Chelsea’s owner, who was paying Jose Mourinho £250,000 a week (£12million a year) before his dismissal last Thursday, is throwing money at Guardiola in an attempt to convince him to turn his back on Manchester City.

Guardiola has already assessed Chelsea’s squad and has indicated that the defending champions, 15th in the Premier League, will need to sign 10 new players.

Abramovich made a previous attempt to...

Full Gist