Footie Central | Football Blog Blogging the football world
Chelsea are plotting a new approach for Benfica Enzo Fernandez.
They made an initial approach to sign the defensive midfielder who was named Young Player of the Tournament at the Qatar World Cup, where he played for the winners Argentina, but that was rejected after the two clubs failed to agree terms.
One of the main sticking points was the structure of the deal. Benfica wanted the entire fee – which could be in excess of £100 million up front – whereas Chelsea wanted to stagger the payment.
However, defensive midfield remains a key priority for Chelsea, with N’Golo Kanté now injury prone, and Jorginho ageing, so they are considering making another bid to sign the 22 year old.
News that UEFA are considering tightening the FFP loophole that has enabled Chelsea to circumvent lhe existing rule by signing players on long contracts, allowing them to amortise their cost of acquisition over a number of years, could give fresh impetus to attempts to get a deal done sooner rather than later.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.