Chelsea and Manchester City have reportedly been told to cough up £45 million to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri.
According to a report by The Sun, Chelsea and Manchester City are both in the market for a left-back signing and have identified Wolverhampton Wanderers left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri as a potential signing. However, they will need to fork out at least £45 million to complete the defender’s signing.
The France under-21 international joined Wolves just last year and became the team’s first-choice left-back towards the end of the season. His performances have caught the eyes of Premier League bigwigs, but Wolves want a substantial amount to sanction his sale, which could help them in a summer rebuild.
The left-back position has been a point of worry for Manchester City, with Pep Guardiola deploying Joao Cancelo, primarily a right-back, at the position, along with Oleksandr Zinchenko in the spot. The Premier League champions want to find a solution once and for all and have identified two priority targets.
Brighton & Hove Albion’s Spanish full-back Marc Cucurella is reportedly on Manchester City’s radar as well, along with Ait-Nouri. The Seagulls value the defender, who was named their Player of the Season for the recently-concluded term – his first in the English top-flight – at £35 million.
Chelsea, meanwhile, are eager to add defensive reinforcements this summer but are yet to get a deal through. While their sluggishness in the transfer window can be attributed to the ownership situation, the Blues need to fast-track their transfer business to land their primary targets.
Chelsea have lost Antonio Rudiger to Real Madrid, while Andreas Christensen is on the verge of completing a Bosman move to Barcelona. There are still question marks over the futures of Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso, both of whom enter the final year of their Chelsea contracts with the west London club in July.
Chelsea have enquired about the possibility of signing Ait-Nouri this summer. Thomas Tuchel is expected to play him as regularly as Alonso is ‘phased out’. But the competition from Manchester City complicates matters. His £45 million price tag also adds an element of uncertainty to the transfer saga.
Brighton have also explored the possibility of signing the Wolves full-back as they prepare for life without Cucurella. But they are not willing to pay around £45 million, handing Chelsea and Manchester City the advantage in his pursuit.