Roman's dream scheme: Get me Ronaldinho, the best player in the world... by Friday!
By MATT LAWTONLast updated at 00:07 28 August 2007
Roman Abramovich has held two meetings with Ronaldinho's brother and adviser, the second in London this weekend, in the hope of bringing the Barcelona superstar to Chelsea.
In the most audacious transfer business of his Chelsea tenure, the Russian billionaire spent the weekend entertaining Roberto de Assis Moreira, flying him in on his private jet and putting him up at the exclusive Lanesborough Hotel in Mayfair.
Hold on! Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard grabs Ronaldinho (right) during last night's 0-0 draw in Santander, which did not go to plan
Abramovich held the second meeting with Moreira at his Knightsbridge house on Saturday morning and is understood to have put an offer to him that would make the Brazil star the highest paid player in Europe.
Sources at Chelsea last night insisted that the first approach came from Ronaldinho's camp and it is unclear what exact figures have been discussed.
It will, however, dwarf the £130,000-a-week deal recently agreed with captain John Terry.
Luring Ronaldinho from the Nou Camp is not going to be easy, and not just because the summer transfer window closes this Friday.
There is the buy-out clause in the contract Ronaldinho signed at Barcelona in September 2005 which runs until 2010. It is a staggering £85million.
But Abramovich is desperate to see his Chelsea side play with more flair and adventure, not least after seeing them stutter to a 1-0 win against Portsmouth on Saturday, and would consider it money well spent for the 27-year-old, who has twice been named World Player of the Year.
Stamford Bridge officials have also been encouraged by Ronaldinho's stuttering performance as part of a three-pronged attack in Barca's La Liga opener against Racing Santander, which they drew 0-0.
Evidence is mounting that the talented attacking quartet of Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o, Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi is becoming increasingly difficult for Nou Camp boss Frank Rijkaard to juggle.
Sportsmail understands that Moreira flew back to Spain last night to speak to his brother following the fixture in Santander and discuss the meeting he had with Abramovich.
On Friday, Jose Mourinho said the transfer window had now closed for Chelsea, insisting the arrival of Juliano Belletti from Barcelona marked the end of their recruitment drive.
"I have closed the door of my dressing room and that's very important to me," said the Chelsea boss. "My squad is completely closed. I know the market is open until the 31st - but not for us."
The Brazilian may now be heading to Chelsea after his adviser-brother Roberto (right) held talks in London
Mourinho has, however, been made aware of the meeting with Moreira and would be more than happy to make an exception for the World Cup and Champions League winner, even if he will have to be creative in accommodating Ronaldinho and Florent Malouda in the same side.
Both players would say their preferred position is on the left wing.
Abramovich hopes the presence of two Brazilians - Belletti and Alex - will encourage Ronaldinho to move to Stamford Bridge, but the key remains the player's brother.
Moreira has long been praised for his 'intelligent' management of his younger brother's career and is hugely influential when it comes to making major decisions.
When Ronaldinho won FIFA's prestigious World Player of the Year award for a second successive year in December 2005, he paid tribute to his brother.
"He's my idol," said Ronaldinho. "He's been through a lot and has helped me every step of the way."
A family tragedy, when Moreira was 17 and Ronaldinho (real name Ronaldo de Assis Moreira) was only eight, formed an unbreakable bond between them.
Frank advice: is Lampard inviting Ronaldinho to join Chelsea after the 1-1 Champions League draw with Barcelona in March 2006?
Moreira was also a promising footballer, representing their local club side in Porto Alegre, Gremio, when he was offered a move to Italy.
As an incentive to stay, Gremio - the club Ronaldinho represented before signing for Paris St Germain - the Moreira family were given a new villa with a swimming pool.
But their father Joao was killed in a horrific accident in the pool, reportedly suffering a heart attack caused by an electrical fault.
Moreira's playing career was ended prematurely by injury but by then his brother was fast emerging as a hugely exciting talent and he turned his attention to advising him.
Meanwhile Barcelona looked lethargic and Thierry Henry was restricted to a half-hour substitute's appearance as they were held at 10-man Racing Santander in their opening La Liga match of the season.
The Catalan club, who spent around £45million on new players this summer including Arsenal's Henry, were outplayed by their modest opponents, one of Spain's lowest-spending teams.
Santander's Polish debutant Ebi Smolarek was sent off midway through the second half.
Henry replaced Lionel Messi, who started alongside Samuel Eto'o and Ronaldinho, but Henry came closest, hitting a post late on.
The Premier League's Brazilian numbers could be getting larger as Manchester City and West Ham joined Chelsea in trying to sign a Brazilian superstar.

Yesterday, Chelsea captain John Terry urged Roman Abramovich to buy Ronaldinho from Barcelona, while Manchester City were preparing to out-bid West Ham with a £12m bid for Inter Milan's Adriano.

On Tuesday, it was reported that Roman Abromovich had met twice with Ronaldinho's brother, Roberto de Assis Moreira, and given him a trip on his private jet and hosted him at Lanesborough Hotel in Mayfair, London. Abramovich held the second meeting with Moreira at his Knightsbridge house on Saturday morning and is understood to have put an offer to him that would make Ronaldinho the highest paid player in Europe.

Sven Goran Eriksson, who held talks with Adriano's representatives on Tuesday, is aware the player does not want to go on loan and City are trying to stretch their budget to give Adriano wages of around £70,000 a week.

Adriano said: "I don't want to go out on loan again. I've already been at Parma, and at that time it was right for my career but now I really must leave for good and that's that." 

A statement by West Ham said: "We are investigating the possibility of a loan deal at this stage."

Adriano has slipped down the pecking order at Inter and fellow Serie A side Lazio would take him depending on his attitude.