Manchester United are considering a move to derail Chelsea's potential purchase of Everton's John Stones, club sources have told ESPN FC.
The Old Trafford club are hopeful that a deal involving Johnny Evans plus cash would be much more amenable to the Merseyside club.
Sources at Chelsea say the Premier League champions are confident they can eventually secure a deal for the highly-rated 21-year-old, but Everton have been increasingly hostile in their responses to the speculation.
Just last week, manager Roberto Martinez castigated Stamford Bridge captain John Terry for openly talking about how players like Stones could represent the future of the club, and accused him of "illegally" going against rules and regulations regarding "tapping up" players of other clubs.
Everton have never definitively ruled out selling Stones, however, and United feel they can use that hostility to leverage the situation in their favour.
There's also the fact that the Old Trafford outfit can offer what Chelsea can't, in an immediate quality defensive replacement in Evans. Everton already have a long-standing interest in the 27-year-old, who manager Louis Van Gaal would be willing to sell if it meant a perceived upgrade.
