Chelsea have reportedly entered the race to sign AS Monaco starlet Thomas Lemar despite the fact that fellow Premier League rivals Arsenal and Liverpool are already in the fray.
According to a recent report by the French news outlet L’Equipe (h/t Metro Sports), Chelsea are currently working on a possibility of launching a January bid for the midfielder, who was a serious target for Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal throughout the summer. The report further confirms that Chelsea have already made contact. However, it is still unknown whether it was made directly to the player or to the club.
Monaco lost the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Benjamin Mendy, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Bernardo Silva over the summer transfer window and were on the verge of losing Lemar. But the Les Monégasques somehow managed to keep hold of the player. Arsene Wenger, on his part, admitted that the Gunners did make a €100m approach to the player, but he himself decided to stay to put. In the midst, the Frenchman also confirmed that they will return for him in the subsequent transfer window.
Wenger said: “Did we make a €100m offer? Yes. Are we going to make another offer? Yes.
Liverpool’s offer, on the other hand, was late, but their interest was firm. The Reds even made a £72m approach for the midfielder but faced an immediate rejection. But now with Emre Can looking close to sealing his move to Juventus, we might very well expect them to make another official approach for Lemar. Known for his excellent dribbling skills and jaw-dropping long-rangers, Lemar was a complete revelation for Monaco last season, scoring an impressive 14 goals.
This season, however, he has utterly failed to justify his €100m price tag as he has only managed one goal so far. But then again, Lemar alone cannot be blamed as Monaco, as a unit, have failed to replicate their old form, hence it is safe to say they will find it hard to keep a hold of him this time around.
Chelsea are set to play a lot of games in December and same will be the case in January, hence, judging by our squad strength, a move for Lemar will work wonders, to say the least.