Chelsea are threatening Manchester City's deal for Aston Villa midfielder James Milner.

The Telegraph says City have yet to come to an agreement with Villa, a situation which is thought to have prompted Chelsea to increase their interest in the England midfielder.

City, having declared their hand some weeks ago, are keen to secure Milner as soon as possible - especially in light of Chelsea's interest - and according to some, they have managed to convince the 24 year-old to agree to a five-year deal at Eastlands worth around £80,000 a week.

Villa have only received one formal offer to date - a £20m bid from City last month - but it looks increasingly likely that Chelsea will enter the race after the club failed to agree new contracts with Joe Cole and Michael Ballack.