Chelsea is ready to submit a third offer of £80 million for Leicester centre-back Wesley Fofana.
The Foxes have already rejected two bids of £60 million and £70 million to secure a sum more affordable than the £85 million Manchester United shelled out to make Harry Maguire the most expensive defender in history in 2019.
Chelsea are reluctant to pay that much and have looked at other players, including Maguire himself, but since negotiations with United have stalled, the Blues are once again concentrating on their top target.
Fofana is optimistic that a deal will be reached soon as an £80 million offer is anticipated to land on Leicester’s desk soon. He is still trying to get out, and according to a source who spoke to 90min, the centre-back missed a practice session last week before being left off the team for Leicester’s 2-1 loss to Southampton.
Chelsea and Fofana have already reached a personal agreement, and he is hoping that this third offer will be sufficient to secure his desired transfer to Stamford Bridge.
“I know football and how it works,” manager Brendan Rodgers said of Fofana’s situation after the Southampton defeat. “It’s an amazing profession. “It’s a business for clubs, for players it’s a dream. They’re trying to fulfil their dreams.
“So I understand it for both, it’s why I provide the bridge in terms of trying to advise him what’s the best way to behave. That’s why I have always spoken so well of Harry Maguire, because of how he was when he was here at the time when he went for a world-record fee for a defender.
“I’ve been in these situations before so you manage it how you see fit and my experience helps in these moments.”
When asked how Fofana would react if he did not leave the club before the transfer window closed, Rodgers admitted that every player reacts differently.
“I’m not sure,” he confessed. “It all depends on the player. You can’t always say for definite how it’s going to be.
“For some players when the window shuts it’s a good moment because they can totally focus on playing again and getting on with their careers. Some players may feel they have lost the opportunity of a dream. They may just never be the same so that’s always the danger.”
