Chelsea have reportedly scheduled Enzo Fernandez’s medical in Portugal ahead of a potential British record £105million transfer on deadline day.
The Blues have been in tough negotiations with Benfica who want the Argentine’s release clause paid in full, while Graham Potter’s outfit hope to pay the fee in instalments.
Sky Sports News have reported that with time running out before Tuesday’s 11pm deadline, Chelsea have changed their plans and have scheduled Fernandez’s potential medical to take place in Lisbon rather than at their base in Cobham.
Club officials are in Portugal in order to get a deal over the line after Chelsea sanctioned Jorginho’s potential £12m exit to Arsenal and have also decided to keep Conor Gallagher at the club, barring any late permanent offers for the England international.
Chelsea have told Benfica that they are prepared to pay Fernandez’s £105m release clause but want to stagger the payments in order to comply with Financial Fair Play, having already made multiple signings in January to bolster Potter’s squad.
Chelsea target Enzo Fernandez. (Image: Getty)
Joao Felix, Mykhaylo Mudryk, Noni Madueke, Benoit Badiashile, David Datro Fofana and Andrey Santos have all joined Chelsea this month, while deals have been agreed for Malo Gusto and Christopher Nkunku to move to Stamford Bridge in the summer.
Chelsea have been wary of potential FFP issues as they have issued several long-term contracts to their incomings stars such as Badiashile and Mudryk, forcing a rule change from UEFA that is set to take place in the summer and will prohibit clubs from offering deals to players for more than five years in order to amortise the fee over a longer period of time.
Chelsea target Enzo Fernandez in action for Benfica. (Image: Getty)
The late change in Fernandez’s medical plan likely means that talks are expected to continue into the evening and the Chelsea chiefs are worried that if a deal is struck, they will not have the time to fly the World Cup winner over to England to complete his medical before the window closes.
If Chelsea agree to pay his release clause in full or Benfica allow the payments to be staggered, he would become the most expensive player in the Premier League’s history – beating Jack Grealish’s £100m transfer to Manchester City in 2021.
The 22-year-old has made just 17 league appearances for Benfica having only joined the club in the summer, but shone in Qatar for his country and was named the World Cup’s Best Young Player.
src: https://www.teamtalk.com/
