Ligue 1 side reject Chelsea verbal bid for promising French attacker

Montpellier turn down opening bid from Chelsea for Elye Wahi

According to Football.London, Montpellier have rejected the opening bid worth €25 million (£21.4 million) for forward Elye Wahi; the Ligue 1 giants are demanding €35 million (£30 million) for the youngster.

Chelsea are in need of reinforcing their attacking line and are pushing for the 20-year-old signing, who has enjoyed a breakthrough season at the Ligue 1 giants. He could join a long list of talented youth stars already on the club’s roster.

This has seen him become an in-demand striker in Europe, and Chelsea hopes to complete the signing before any other club makes a bid for the Frenchman. Doing so will see them land one of the best prospects in the French top flight.

Wahi led the attacking line of Montpellier as he scored 19 league goals from 33 appearances in Ligue 1 last season, and besides the Blues, Arsenal and Atletico Madrid are also keen on signing him. Clearly, the onus is on us to move fast and reach an agreement quickly.

Montpellier valued him at €35 million (£30 million), and since interest in him has grown, they are seeking to make as much money out of him as possible. If Chelsea wants to complete his signing decisively, they will need to make a bigger bid. Surely given his potential, the amount quoted is reasonable.

Wahi is a versatile player who can play anywhere in the forward line and can also operate as an attacking midfielder. Given that the Blues have enough attacking players, he could fill an offensive midfield role.

However, Chelsea’s offer was a verbal bid, and it’s just part of the club’s transfer strategy to test each other’s patience. We have not submitted anything yet, but now it gives you a gist of where the deal could be closed. They are asking for £30 million, so we can haggle the price down to a level that appeals to both parties.

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If Chelsea are serious about getting him, they must move quickly since the 2023-24 season is drawing enar. Let’s hope our second offer will be enough to persuade the Ligue 1 club to sell the 20-year-old to us sooner rather than later.