Chelsea are the latest side to rival Liverpool’s interest in Lyon playmaker, Nabil Fekir, report France Football
It was expected that Fekir would make the move to Anfield prior to the World Cup as it was reported that Liverpool had agreed a £60 million fee with French giants, Olympique Lyonnais.
Lyon officially terminated negotiations with Liverpool on July 11thand released a statement on their official website. As per The Independent, reports from France suggested that Liverpool tried to lower the negotiated transfer fee which resulted in Lyon’s termination.
Despite the Liverpool negotiations breaking down at the eleventh hour, Lyon President, Jean-Michael Aulas did not rule out Fekir’s departure, supported by his quote: we will surely have a bit of a storm in the week before the end of the England market on August 9th.
France Football report that Fekir would be an ideal signing for the way Maurizio Sarri wants to implement his high-intensity pressing style which is synonymous with his three years as Napoli Head Coach. This would be a welcome addition, especially as Chelsea’s pressing needs work following the one-sided Community Shield defeat at Wembley on Sunday. Cesc Fabregas, in particular, badly struggled as the Premier League champions easily picked off their opponents.
There is a similarity here to Liverpool’s complicated pursuit of defender Virgil Van Dijk. Negotiations were terminated in the summer when it was reported Liverpool had made an illegal approach for the then Southampton defender. Then, at the start of the January transfer window, a world-record deal was completed. Following the Reds 5-0 demolition of Napoli in Dublin on Saturday, manager Jürgen Klopp reported that Liverpool were still in the market for one player. Liverpool, as opposed to Chelsea, have the attraction of Champions League football which could tempt the 25-year-old Frenchman.
Fakir, 25, made 40 appearances in all competitions last season, scoring 23 goals and providing eight assists. He is an attacking midfielder, traditionally playing in the number 10 role behind the striker. Fekir can also play as a centre-forward and on either wing. If the reports are to be true, Sarri would most likely use the Frenchman alongside the likes of Jorginho and N’Golo Kante as a midfield trio.
Chelsea are notorious for rather left-field signings so close to deadline day. In 2015/16, Papy Djilobodji was signed from Nantes and Michael Hector from Reading. In 2016/17, you could argue Marcos Alonso and David Luiz were rather left-field and in 2017/18, Davide Zappacosta signed in the summer window and Emerson in January.
Silly season is in full swing as the transfer deadline in England approaches but Fekir would be a welcome addition.
Should Chelsea sign Fekir? Let us know.
