Chelsea are planning to accelerate talks with midfielder Mason Mount over a new contract following their imminent hiring of Mauricio Pochettino as new manager, 90min understands.
A full agreement has been reached with the former Tottenham boss, who will fly into London and put pen to paper on a contract in the coming days with a view to taking over from Frank Lampard at the end of the season.
With that pressing order of business now all but finalised, Chelsea's focus will once again turn to the future of Mount. The 24-year-old is approaching the last 12 months of his contract and has previously rejected the offer of an extension, leading to warnings from Blues officials that he will be sold this summer if he does not change his stance.
90min revealed in April that Chelsea were confident that the imminent arrival of Pochettino would impress Mount and boost their chances of reaching an agreement over fresh terms, and sources have confirmed that their optimism remains.
Pochettino is understood to be a huge fan of Mount and has made it abundantly clear to Chelsea that he wants to see a new contract handed to the academy graduate, and the Blues are ready for a fresh round of negotiations in the coming weeks.
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Mount has held positive, informal talks with Chelsea, including co-owner Todd Boehly, in recent weeks, which has boosted the club's hopes that an extension will soon be agreed.
Should Mount continue to reject the offers on the table, he will have no shortage of suitors. Liverpool have long been keen on the 24-year-old while 90min can confirm that Arsenal have registered their interest with Mount's representatives.
The Gunners are prepared to step up their pursuit of the midfielder in the coming weeks if Mount does decide to leave Chelsea, who are readying another push to try and prevent that from happening.
Mount has struggled with injury in recent months and, should he opt to leave Stamford Bridge, may have already played his final game for the club as he battles to return from a minor operation on his pelvis.
Interim boss Lampard has already confirmed Mount 'might' miss the final few weeks of the season, and ahead of this weekend's 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest he confessed it would be a 'tight call' over whether the midfielder will be fit again before the end of the campaign.
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This article was originally published on 90min as Chelsea to step up Mason Mount contract talks after Mauricio Pochettino agreement.
