The latest on Chelsea's transfer pursuit of Wesley Fofana

Suraj Radia

Updated: 23 Aug 2022 18:11 BST
3 min read

Wesley Fofana, Leicester City, Chelsea, 2022/23 — © ProShots

Chelsea have had a third bid rejected by Leicester for Wesley Fofana as they look to step up their chase for a defender before the transfer window closes.

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The Frenchman missed Leicester's 2-1 loss to Southampton due to the speculation and Foxes' boss Brendan Rodgers will assess whether Fofana is ready to face Chelsea in their next game.

Chelsea's latest offer was believed to be worth £70 million, however the full amount would only be reached with 'difficult' add-ons according to sources.

Leicester are believed to be holding out for a fee in excess of the £80m they received for Harry Maguire from Manchester United in 2019 but it is unclear whether Chelsea will return with a new bid.

Personal terms have already been agreed with Fofana and the 21-year-old is keen on joining Chelsea but Leicester are hoping to hold onto their prized asset, who only signed a new five-year deal in March.

Rodgers had previously admitted Fofana had not been in the right mindset to play for Leicester, telling NBC: "I mentioned in the week about coming into a Premier League game and maybe one or two players not being in the right frame of mind, you can’t carry them and certainly we can’t."

Chelsea set for busy end to window

Chelsea have been among the Premier League's top spenders this summer, having spent more than £180m on five players since the arrival of new owner Todd Boehly.

However, the Blues are still in the market for a host of players, including a defender and a forward, and had identified Fofana as their priority target.

With Chelsea potentially being priced out for Fofana, the club had assessed other targets including Maguire, although United were quick to dismiss any enquiries for their captain.

🎯 Fofana
🎯 Aubameyang
🎯 Leão
🎯 Gordon

It’s going to be a busy end to the transfer window at Chelsea… 🔥 pic.twitter.com/RDzKYnxVim

— LDN (@LDNFootbalI) August 23, 2022

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel is desperate to sign another defender, with Emerson Palmieri set to join West Ham and Barcelona still chasing Marcos Alonso.

The Blues' disappointing start to the season has also stressed the need for a clinical striker and Chelsea are expected to push ahead with the signing of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Barcelona.

The club are also hoping to sign Everton winger Anthony Gordon for a fee of up to £60m before the transfer window closes at the end of the month and have enquired about AC Milan's Rafael Leao.

Read more about: Premier League, Chelsea, Leicester, Man Utd, Anthony Gordon, Harry Maguire, Marcos Alonso, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Rafael Leao, Wesley Fofana