England's four Champions League representatives have been invited to bid for Sergio Arguero, the Argentina striker who last week declared his intention to leave Atletico Madrid.
Though he has admirers in Spain and Italy, Aguero's preference is to join one of the leading four Premier League clubs.
Chelsea have pursued Aguero for several seasons and retain an interest in him as a potential reinforcement. Critical decisions on player recruitment and retention, however, have been placed on hold until the club's new management structure is formalised.
Arsenal, who are considering an unprecedented overhaul of their playing staff, have made informal inquiries but are unlikely to meet Atletico's asking price for Aguero.
Manchester City have also contacted the player's representatives. The Abu Dhabi-owned club regard Aguero as a potential replacement for Carlos Tevez should their leading scorer carry through with his declared intention to leave the club.
Aguero, 22, agreed a contract extension with Atletico in January that reduced its formal buyout clause to €45 million (Dh236m). It also was agreed that Atletico would not stand in the way of a transfer this summer.
"I find it hard to leave Atletico, it hurts and saddens me, but I don't find it hard to explain why I am doing it," Aguero said. "I'm convinced that I must be true to myself. I think that I should not rule out the possibility to keep learning, to keep growing."