Atletico Madrid CEO Gil Marin has admitted Joao Felix could leave the Spanish side amid interest from Chelsea.

Atletico splashed out €126 million (£113m/$142m) to sign Felix in the summer of 2019 but the forward has struggled to live up to expectations at the Spanish capital.

“[Joao Felix] is the biggest bet this club has taken in its history. I personally think he’s a top talent, a world class player,” Marin told TVE.

“For reasons it isn’t worth getting into – the relationship between him and the boss [Simeone], the minutes played, his motivation right now – it makes you think that the reasonable thing is that if there’s an option that’s good for the player, good for the club, we can look at it. I’d love him to stay personally, but I don’t think that’s the player’s idea.”

Marin’s comments are likely to alert Chelsea to the availability of Felix ahead of the January transfer window.