Real Set to Beat Chelsea and City in Striker Chase - Report

Real Madrid have emerged favourites to sign South American hotshot Radamel Falcao from their city rivals Atletico Madrid, reports the Daily Mirror.

The Colombian international has been in impressive form since arriving at the Spanish capital in 2011 and is being chased by top European clubs. The report states the Spanish champions are leading the race to sign the former Porto star for a fee around £45m and Real boss Jose Mourinho is now confident of his chances of bringing the 26-year-old to Santiago Bernabeu. Falcao's father, Radamel Garcia, had earlier revealed the striker's dream is to play for Los Blancos.

"His dream is to play for Real Madrid. Since he was a boy he's always wanted to play there. Other teams in Europe like Chelsea and Manchester City were interested in him. If he can't play for Real Madrid, he'll play for a team in England. Of course he wants to go to the 2014 World Cup, but most of all, he wants to go to Real Madrid," Garcia explained.

Premier League heavyweights Chelsea and Manchester City were also linked with a move for the Falcao in January, along with the Spanish champions. The Blues were earlier considered favourites to land the player but it now emerges that Real are in pole position for his signature.

Torres' Form Could Hamper Falcao Approach

Meanwhile, according to ESPN, Fernando Torres' recent good run under interim manager Rafael Benitez could cause Chelsea to rethink the move to sign Falcao in the January transfer window. The Spaniard scored four goals in the Blues' last two games and appears to have some form under his compatriot and former Liverpool boss Benitez.

Chelsea are also reportedly looking to land Serbian wonderkid Lazar Markovic from Partizan Belgrade in January, while Hulk could possibly make a switch to the Blues, after the Brazilian's relationship with Zenit St Petersburg manager Luciano Spalletti is now understood to have worsened beyond repair.