Chelsea's pursuit of the highly-rated Anderlecht forward Romelu Lukaku is gathering pace after the Belgium international indicated he hoped and expected his future to be resolved by early next week, when he is due to sit academic examinations.
The forward, a revelation this season and one of a number of high-profile young players Chelsea hope to lure to Stamford Bridge despite currently being without a manager, is expected to feature for Belgium in their key Euro 2012 qualifying tie against Turkey on Friday. Their opponents in Brussels, coincidentally, are coached by Guus Hiddink, whom Chelsea hope to lure back to the Premier League as a replacement for the sacked Carlo Ancelotti.
Anderlecht had originally envisaged raising around £20m through Lukaku's sale, a fee Chelsea would be reluctant to meet for an 18-year-old with only two years of regular senior football behind him. Yet the Belgian club are expected to accept less up front for the striker, with further fees to be determined by honours and appearances, with Chelsea's interest the most advanced for his services. The player himself apparently accepts he may have to begin life at a new club in a bit-part role from the substitutes' bench.
Asked if his future was likely to be settled next week, Lukaku said: "That could be so, yes. It is going to be one of the top two or three clubs in England, or else I stay at Anderlecht. I want to leave because I want to score goals in stadia full of 50,000 people, and to play in the Champions League.
"If I go to a top club, in the beginning I know I will be on the bench, sometimes playing 10 or 15 minutes. That will be it at the start. But my goal is that, in those 15 minutes, I will grab my chance and do better every time so that, by the end of the season when it gets really important, and there are a lot of games, I will be ready."
Lukaku, who is studying public relations part-time at a college in Brussels, is due to sit a geography exam on Tuesday, some four days after the Group A match against Hiddink's side.
"I would like my future sorted out by 5 June because my exams start the following day," he said, "and I don't want any other distractions at that time."
The striker features high on a list of potential recruits at Chelsea, with his compatriot Kevin de Bruyne, currently at Genk, and Brazil international striker Neymar also to be pursued.