Scolari targets Fabiano as Bridge heads for City

The England defender is set to open talks with City manager Mark Hughes today and expected to agree a deal in the next 48 hours.

Scolari is reluctant to let Bridge go but has been told by owner Roman Abramovich that he must sell before he can buy.

The Brazilian coach is desperate to sign another striker to add more competition to Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba and has been a fan of the £15m-rated Fabiano for some time.

The 28-year-old is rated as one of the best strikers in La Liga, having scored more than 40 goals for Sevilla in three years, and has also taken his impressive form to the international stage.

Fabiano has netted 14 times for Brazil, including a hat-trick against Portugal in a 6-2 win two months ago.

Scolari is hopeful he can agree a deal with the Spanish club, even though Sevilla president Jose Maria del Nido publicly insists he doesn't want to sell the striker.

Sevilla are second in La Liga but trail leaders Barcelona by 10 points and were knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Sampdoria last month.

Chelsea have also been linked with Marseille star Hatem Ben Arfa and CSKA Moscow's Yuri Zhirkov, dubbed the Russian Ronaldinho, who former Blues boss Avram Grant revealed was on the club's wish list after he was sacked last summer.

Chelsea believe a price of £12m is too good an offer to refuse for Bridge, who joined them for £7m from Southampton in 2003.

The 28-year-old is the club's second-choice left-back behind Ashley Cole and has made just 29 Premier League starts since his rival joined from Arsenal in 2006.

Scolari knows he can use Paulo Ferreira to fill in should Cole get injured or need a rest, as he plays at left-back for Portugal.

Although Bridge signed a new four-year contract at Chelsea in the summer, he is worried about his place in the England squad.

Coach Fabio Capello has made it clear he wants members of his team to be playing regularly for their clubs.

Bridge will also benefit financially from the move as he is expected to take his earnings from £70,000 a week to closer to £100,000 a week.

Scolari is expected to name a strong team for tomorrow's FA Cup third-round clash with Southend, not only to ensure progression in the competition but also to prepare for the Manchester United game the following week.

Frank Lampard, Ricardo Carvalho and Didier Drogba are all expected to start but captain John Terry is suspended, while Alex and Florent Malouda are out with hamstring strains.

Southend's players are already planning to scrap for the biggest stars' shirts at the final whistle.

Striker Lee Barnard said: "There has been a bit of banter during training about getting the shirts but everyone seems to want the same players.

"If he's playing, I don't think Lampard will be short of markers in the last minute."

Another Southend player hoping to make an impression on the Blues is 19-year-old Junior Stanislas.

The on-loan West Ham midfielder is anxious to prove to Gianfranco Zola he has a future at Upton Park.

Stanislas has already impressed with three goals in six games, two of which came in the 3-1 victory over Luton in the last round.

He said: "They have a few former West Ham players like Frank Lampard and Joe Cole but they were a bit before my time.

"It will be great to play against them, though, and the dream is to try to make sure it isn't a one-off.

"These are just the sort of games I want to play in and if I keep working hard then hopefully I can do it every week."