Chelsea News: £70 million bid for Wesley Fofana rejected by Leicester City
Chelsea had a third bid for Wesley Fofana rejected by Leicester City. They have suggested they will pay up to £60 million to sign Anthony Gordon from Everton
Benched Wesley Fofana still has a big prize tagThomas Tuchel has named Fofana his No. 1 defensive priority, and Chelsea could make a fourth offer before the teams meet on Saturday at Stamford Bridge.
Leicester boss Rodgers stated that the club is refusing Chelsea's bids for their promising young defender. He also questioned Fofana's thinking, claiming the player was not fulfilling his contractual commitments.
What did club manager Brendan Rodgers say about Fofana?
Following Leicester's defeat by Southampton last Saturday, Rodgers admitted that Fofana was "not quite in the right frame of mind" to play.
Rodgers said, "From a football perspective if it happens, the sooner the better, because it might allow us to do some work. The club are aware as time goes on that it becomes more difficult but the valuation needs to be met."
"These guys get well-paid, the very least you can do is turn up. If you don't, with all respect you can't just walk into our group. Day to day, he's a good kid, but it's been hard for him to deal with everything while he is in the right frame of mind. It's been difficult for him to play," the Leicester City manager continued.
Fofana, who has expressed a desire to join Chelsea, missed a training session last week and trained alone the following day. He will now practise with Leicester's youth team.
Fofana was not included in Leicester's matchday squad for Saturday's 2-1 loss to Southampton. He was also absent as the team moved to the third round of the English League Cup with a penalty shootout victory against fourth-tier Stockport on Tuesday.
Who else can Chelsea sign?
On the other hand, Chelsea has reopened talks with Everton over Gordon after their initial offer of around £45 million was rejected last week.
Although Frank Lampard admires Gordon as a player and a person and prefers to build around him rather than cash in on him, it is understood that the club is willing to spend up to £60 million plus hefty add-ons for the England under-21 international.
Chelsea is in talks with Internazionale about loaning Trevoh Chalobah, while Spezia has requested the loan of Ethan Ampadu.
Fofana has been a revelation since joining StÉtienne in a £36.5 million trade two years ago.
The defender made 12 appearances for the Foxes in 2021-22, including starting the first two Premier League games, though his impact was limited last season due to a pre-season leg fracture.
Leicester demands more money than they received for Harry Maguire, who sold to Manchester United for £80 million.
Leicester's only new signing is goalkeeper Alex Smithies, who joined as a free agent after leaving Cardiff.
Rodgers had many signings planned, but the club has been unable to make any reinforcements as it tries to balance the books.
Leicester has a bloated squad and was looking to offload fringe players like Jannik Vestergaard and Boubakary Soumaré, both of whom signed last summer, to fund additions owing to financial fair play limitations.
This weekend, Leicester will meet Chelsea in the Premier League. Fofana's future remains undetermined, as the Blues may pursue him further before the transfer window closes.
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