Chelsea have still not reached an agreement with Napoli over Maurizio Sarri as the deadline to meet his release clause fast approaches.

Sarri is Chelsea's first choice to replace coach Antonio Conte, who is expected to be dismissed, this summer.

Talks were held with his representatives last week and confidence remains high in the Italian's camp that he will move to Stamford Bridge on a two-year contract with an option for another 12 months.

However, Chelsea are still negotiating with Napoli over the £7m release clause in his contract. The Serie A club are demanding the fee in full despite already effectively replacing the 59-year-old with Carlo Ancelotti.

The clause expires on Thursday, but with Sarri still having one year left to run on his current deal, Napoli could theoretically demand an even greater sum after that.