Sandro, centre, indicated to Juventus last night that he was keen to move to London

Chelsea are on the verge of agreeing a £61 million deal for Alex Sandro with Juventus that would make the left wing back the most expensive defender in the world.

The Premier League champions would break their transfer record, set when they signed Fernando Torres for £50 million from Liverpool in 2011. The fee would also eclipse the £50 million that Chelsea received when they sold David Luiz to Paris Saint-Germain three years ago.

Sandro, 26, indicated to Juventus last night that he was keen to move to London after the Italian champions attempted to persuade him to stay.

Juventus have offered the Brazil international an improvement on his £75,000-a-week deal, which runs until 2022, but are unlikely to keep him against his wishes. He