Chelsea hunting Napoli wizard Marek Hamsik

If you haven't heard of Marek Hamsik, you soon will. The Napoli midfielder will be Slovakia's talisman as they aim to overcome Italy, Paraguay and New Zealand at World Cup 2010, and is most certainly one to watch in South Africa this summer.

After that, my hope for him to stay at the San Paolo is likely to be in vain. While Walter Mazzarri has turned around the Naples outfit's fortunes since the departure of Roberto Donadoni - taking them into the fourth Champions League spot at the time of writing, though not the time of publication - Hamsik is a man in demand and could well have some attractive options. In a sense, the Partenopei probably have to qualify for the Champions League in order to keep him.

Like striker Ezequiel Lavezzi and defender Fabiano Santacroce, Hamsik has been consistently linked with a move away from the south of Italy. England's been on the cards, much to the amusing disgust of Napoli's eccentric chairman, movie mogul Aurelio De Laurentiis.

And with Hamsik's contract negotiations yet to be concluded, the brilliant 22-year-old is on the shopping list for Roman Abramovich and Chelsea. Speaking to the wonderfully named Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli, former Chelsea "transfer market observer" Carlo Iacomuzzi revealed that he has scouted Hamsik for the West London club and that more scouts have been sent to Italy to check on his progress.

According to Iacomuzzi, Abramovich is on board the Hamsik wagon and a bid will be tabled this summer, with 30 million euros being the figure mentioned.

While I believe he's worth every cent - or whatever the hell 0.01 of a euro is - it's difficult to see where he'd fit into the Chelsea system in the short term. If they do sign him, it's a sign that Carlo Ancelotti will be looking to the future and beginning the task of Chelsea's difficult impending rebuilding operation.

Hamsik is an enterprising, dynamic midfield player with a fantastic eye for goal, a wide passing range and a great engine. It's not something Chelsea are lacking currently, but with Michael Ballack aging, it's possible that Hamsik has been earmarked for his spot in the middle. A midfield unit boasting Hamsik, Frank Lampard and Michael Essien is mouthwatering.

But Chelsea won't have it all their own way. Former Blues boss Jose Mourinho is said to fancy taking the Slovakian gem to Inter. That's if he's still in Milan by then, which I'm not personally convinced about.

So, would Hamsik be a good signing for Ancelotti and Chelsea? Let us know what you think.