Chelsea and Liverpool are among a few English outfits looking to bring FC Porto full-back Alex Telles to England in January.
According to Portuguese publication O Jogo, Chelsea, Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers are all interested in completing a January deal to sign Alex Telles. The FC Porto left-back is on the radar of the three English clubs, who are all looking to strengthen their options on the left side of the defence and boost their chances of a successful 2017-18 campaign.
Alex Telles took time to establish himself in Europe. The Brazilian arrived in Europe after sealing a move to Galatasaray in January, 2014 but soon saw himself moving to Italy, with Inter Milan taking the player on a season-long loan. Telles finally joined Porto in the summer of 2016.
The player was brought in as a replacement for compatriot Alex Sandro, who had earlier departed for Juventus. And the 25-year-old has been able to offset Sandro’s exit. The present season has seen Telles take on the mantle of being a creator as well, with a goal and 12 assists in 26 games in all competitions for FC Porto.
But, the left-back is now on the radar of Chelsea and Liverpool. Chelsea themselves have been pursuing Alex Sandro for a long while now. But, there are rumours that the Blues have pulled out of the race for the Brazilian. In Sandro’s stead, they are now seeking a deal for Alex Telles, who seems to have outgrown the tag of Alex Sandro’s replacement and is making a name for himself in Portugal.
Chelsea have been linked with Telles a while ago as well, again as an alternate target for Alex Sandro and it is interesting to see the Blues shift their focus to the 25-year-old again. Liverpool on the other hand, recently reinforced their left side of the defence with the summer arrival of Andrew Robertson.
.@FCPorto defender Alex Telles enjoyed a fine December and is our Liga NOS player of the month pic.twitter.com/zRODk1oo3x
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) January 2, 2018
The Scot has, of late, looked like the player to assume the left-back role for the long haul after a below-average start to his Liverpool career. But, apart from Robertson, Liverpool are short of options in the said position. James Milner is now being reinstated as a midfielder while Alberto Moreno has been struggling with injuries of late.
Thus, the pursuit of Alex Telles does make sense for both the clubs. Interestingly, there is another English club in the race – a potential dark horse in Wolves. They are currently topping the Championship table and look primed to earn promotion to the top-flight come the end of the season.
To add to the title of dark horse, the presence of Nuno Espirito Santo, the current manager of Wolves, have already seen Rafa Mir reject Real Madrid for the Molineux outfit. And, the Espirito Santo effect might just come in handy for them while competing with Chelsea and Liverpool.
Telles has a release clause of €40 million – an amount that neither Chelsea nor Liverpool will baulk at. And Wolves too, could put up such numbers in order to bring the player over to Molineux. A January deal might not be in the best interest for both Telles and FC Porto.
While Porto would lose a key player like Telles, the 25-year-old himself will be afforded little time to adjust to his surroundings in England, given the packed schedule.
