Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham are interested in Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo for £65m, while Chelsea have also joined the race.
Chelsea have emerged as favorites to sign Antoine Semenyo after launching a belated bid to sign the Bournemouth star. Semenyo, 25, is wanted by a number of Premier League clubs including Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham.
The London-born Ghanaian international is available for £65m due to a release clause in his contract which comes into effect on New Year’s Day. However, the clause is only valid until the second week of January, giving Bournemouth plenty of time to sign a replacement.
He is now likely to leave next month, but Chelsea have not previously considered signing him. Multiple media outlets report that the Blues entered the race on Monday night after Semenyo and his representatives spent the day considering their options.
According to the Mail, Semenyo was born in west London and has links to Chelsea. The 25-year-old joined Bournemouth for £10m two years ago from Bristol City.
Semenyo’s release clause is set at £60 million plus £5 million in add-ons, which will be reduced in the summer transfer window, but interested clubs are wary that by then it may be too late. The forward has made 17 appearances for Bournemouth this season, scoring eight goals and providing three assists.
read more: Arne Slott gives update on Liverpool’s January transfer plans after Alexander Isak injuryread more: Man United “decision on double transfer” as Koby Mainu was directly affected
The Cherries are reluctant to lose Semenyo, especially after losing four key players over the summer, but they will ultimately be helpless if suitors trigger the clause. Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola said on Tuesday afternoon: “Semenyo is with us now. He was training with us again today.”
“I know there’s a lot of noise around him. I’m not worried, but what worries me is that it’s not affecting his performance. He’s not doing well. He’s very dedicated to the team and I hope we can keep him here.”
“(It’s) a situation we can’t control, but Antoine is our player right now. He’s going to keep playing for us. As far as I’m concerned, we don’t want to lose him, we never want to lose him. But every time the market opens, you never know what’s going to happen.
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“For me, Antoine is performing very well. It’s not just in the last two games where he has scored. He has consistently performed very well from the beginning. Even when he is not scoring, he is still valuable to us. In the end we do not only ask for numbers. It is no secret that he is a big player for us.”
Iraola said he could understand why so many clubs were interested, adding: “Yes, he is performing surprisingly well. But a lot of wingers from other teams are also performing surprisingly well.”
“Almost every team in the league has players who make a difference, especially offensively. You never know what’s going to happen in the winter market.”
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