Chelsea baulk at asking price for top Xabi Alonso target Pep Chavarria after ‘complicated’ transfer talks
16 Jul 2026 15:58 BST |
4 min read
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Chelsea have been stunned after being quoted the asking price for one of their top transfer targets this summer, with talks being described as ‘complicated’ despite weeks of negotiations.
The Blues have made three senior additions to their side this summer, having seen Marco Palestra join the club after the pre-agreed arrivals of Geovany Quenda and Emmanuel Emegha.
Chelsea have also raised more than €130 million in sales through the departures of Andrey Santos and and Tyrique George, as well as the €55m exit of Marc Cucurella to Real Madrid last month.
A replacement for Cucurella is among Chelsea’s highest priorities and the club are believed to have identified Pep Chavarria as their ideal target but they have so far seen an offer of around €18m rejected by Rayo Vallecano.
The BBC report that Chelsea are willing to raise their offer to £21.2m (€25m) but they have been told by Rayo that Chavarria will not be sold unless his €50m release clause is met in full.
Talks remain ongoing and Chelsea hope that Chavarria’s desire to move will force Rayo’s hand in negotiations but both sides are still some way short of reaching an agreement.
Chelsea face hardball stance for top Xabi Alonso target Pep Chavarria
Chavarria has a large portion of his career in Spain’s second tier but the 28-year-old’s advanced stats are thought to put him at a similar level to Cucurella, which has led to Rayo taking a hardline stance for their star defender.
Chelsea’s interest is believed to be led by new manager Xabi Alonso and the club initially felt they had encouragement over a much cheaper deal but Rayo are not willing to lower their demands for a player that still has four years remaining on his contract.
Rayo are understood to be in a strong financial position and are described as being able to resist offers for their top players ‘in a similar way to Spain’s traditional big three of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.’
The La Liga side would also be liable for a 25% tax charge on any profit they make on a player they signed for €1.8m in 2022, giving Rayo further reason to hold out for the release clause.
Chavarria is seen as the ideal player for Alonso’s system and Chelsea are hopeful they can come to an agreement but it remains to be seen whether talks can reach a positive conclusion after drawn out negotiations so far.
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