Chelsea reluctant to reduce £15.5m asking price for on-loan midfield star

Napoli may not be willing to complete the signing of Chelsea midfielder Tiemou Bakayoko

A report by Italian outlet, Il Roma (h/t Express), mentions that Chelsea are not budging from their initial asking price for midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko, who is currently on loan at Napoli.

The French midfielder was signed from AS Monaco in 2016, but failed to cement his place in the Chelsea team. And he has been out on loan for the past three seasons.

New manager Thomas Tuchel is also not keen on having the former Rennes midfielder in his future plans at Chelsea. And so Chelsea are open to sanctioning a permanent sale of the player in the summer.

He joined Serie A side Napoli at the start of the season, with reports emerging that Gennaro Gattuso’s side want to make a permanent move for him due to his impressive start at the club.

No deal?

Chelsea were said to demand £15.5million for the midfielder then, a price tag which has stayed intact despite the 26-year-old’s growing inactivity at the club. He has played just 32 minutes in the last 4 league games.

And Napoli owner, Aurelio De Laurentiis, is not interested in paying that price for Bakayoko. A negotiation could take place for a reduction in the fee, but Chelsea do not want to reduce it too much. (h/t Express)

This deal has the potential to impact the summer window for Chelsea as they look to raise funds in order to sign top players. With an outlay of nearly £250million last summer, the Blues would like to recoup some money.

More Chelsea News:

• Transfer News: Chelsea interested in signing Jesus Corona
• Chelsea want full £26m for Fikayo Tomori sale
• Transfer News: Chelsea still keeping tabs on Gianluigi Donnarumma

And Bakayoko belongs to the section of players who could well be off soon in order to raise funds for Chelsea. The Blues would be hoping that Bakayoko regains his form in Italy so that a summer deal becomes easier.