Xabi Alonso given Enzo Fernandez transfer instruction as £170m Chelsea agreement reached

Andrey Santos is on his way out of Stamford Bridge this summer while his Chelsea teammate Enzo Fernandez continues to be linked with an exit before the window closes

With Andrey Santos on his way to Manchester United, there is even more of an air of curiosity around Enzo Fernandez’s future at Chelsea.

It has been the main talking point at Stamford Bridge this summer: will Fernandez stay put or will he depart? If it was up to the midfielder, he would be gone – he would have already bought his house in Madrid and he would be looking forward to the start of a new chapter once the World Cup has concluded.

Unfortunately for Fernandez, that is not the case and transfers, particularly ones of this magnitude, are never as straightforward and easy as that. In this specific case, it has turned out to be a complicated move and has actually turned into a saga.

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Fernandez’s entourage are publicly calling for a transfer and that prompted Real Madrid to release an extraordinary statement last week claiming they will not be making a move for the Argentina international this summer. As with any transfer saga, there is so much to unpack and there are so many questions still looming.

One of them being, does Santos’ move to Man United impact Fernandez’s future? Or should it? Bobby Vincent and Sam Truelove are in agreement below:

Bobby Vincent

The bottom line, for me, is: Chelsea should not leave themselves too much to do this summer. In my opinion, I don’t see anyone paying £120m for Fernandez, so with that in mind he should be a Chelsea player come September 1.

Santos leaving for £50m might seem like good money but it is one that could come back to bite the Blues in the long run. Equally, flipping the Brazilian midfielder for around £32m profit for one season (where he was not a regular in the starting XI) can be seen as good business.

Chelsea do not want to leave themselves light when it comes to the centre of midfield. As we all know, Romeo Lavia, unfortunately, cannot be relied upon due to his injury record. Reece James can also play in midfield but you could say the same about his consistent muscular problems.

Dario Essugo, too, had an injury-disrupted debut season at Stamford Bridge. Valentin Barco is coming in but I would like Chelsea to go out and get one more quality, starting-level central midfielder to boost Alonso’s depth in his first campaign as manager.

Sam Truelove

I liked Santos but there was no question his pathway to the Chelsea starting XI was blocked. With no European football next season, the Brazilian simply would not have got the chances he would have liked.

Whether he gets those chances at Manchester United remains to be seen but I think it’s a good move for the 22-year-old. It may well be a transfer that comes back to bite the Blues, too, as £50m is quite the deal in my opinion given Santos’ potential.

Fernandez, I think, will stay at Chelsea this summer. The Argentina international came on leaps and bounds last season and could well be one of Alonso’s star players.

I just can’t see a club willing to pay the £120m asking price now that Real Madrid have taken a giant step back. Keeping an Argentina international like Fernandez around is not a bad thing either and he does bring leadership and experience to a youthful Chelsea squad.