Chelsea’s approach to sign Premier League midfielder rebuffed despite their willingness to pay £60m fee: Reports

Chelsea have seen their bid for Alex Scott rejected by AFC Bournemouth. The Englishman is also a target for Arsenal and Manchester United this summer.

According to a report in The Athletic, Chelsea launched a £60 million move for Scott following the sale of Andrey Santos. The 22-year-old is among the midfielders they are targetting this summer to bolster Xabi Alonso’s squad.

Bournemouth are not interested in selling their star player, despite him rejecting a new deal at the club. The midfielder has two seasons left on his contract and is looking to leave the club this summer.

However, talkSPORT claim that they will sell the midfielder for £80 million, but no side have come close to the valuation. They are pushing him to sign a new deal with a release clause available for the 2027 summer window, but the Englishman is not keen.

Chelsea are expected to make another bid for Scott this month, while Arsenal and Manchester United are preparing their offers for him. The Blues are in the driver’s seat as he wants to make the switch to Stamford Bridge.

Apart from Scott, the Blues also have a deal in place to sign Valentin Barco from sister club RC Strasbourg, but he has not been announced yet. The Argentine is expected to join once he is back from vacation following the FIFA World Cup loss.

Xabi Alonso eyes title at Chelsea after joining in the summer

Xabi Alonso was quizzed in his first press conference if he would be given enough time to win the Premier League title at Chelsea. He was quick to sidestep the question, saying only time would tell but he was confident and said:

“Time will tell, but what I am sure is that we have the ambition to win a lot of games, to be competitive, we want to take important decision. We need to build strong principles, a strong mentality and culture in the club and time will tell. I am not going to say what will happen in May, for me it is too early to say that.”

“But I am confident, I am optimistic to think that we can have a great season and for that it is time to prepare, it is time to work, it is time to be intelligent in many things and after to hope that we have this belief and to have this belief within the team with our fans here in Stamford Bridge will be very important.”

Chelsea hired Alonso in the summer, after sacking Liam Ronseiir within 3.5 months of hiring him in January.