Chelsea in trouble as Barkley stays put
Ross Barkley became the latest player to reject a move to Premier League champion Chelsea on Thursday, pulling out of a deal as the summer transfer window closed.
Everton owner Farhad Moshiri revealed that a transfer fee of £35 million — about $56 million — had been agreed and Barkley had passed a medical examination when the midfielder changed his mind about moving.
“It’s a big surprise, but that’s football,” Moshiri told broadcaster Sky Sports.
Chelsea did sign defender Davide Zappacosta from Italian club Torino, but transfer setbacks appear to have damaged Antonio Conte’s bid to defend the title.
Striker Romelu Lukaku opted to join Manchester United in July and Conte’s transfer plans further disintegrated in the final two days of the transfer window.
Barkley’s rejection stunned Chelsea after midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain opted for Liverpool and forward Fernando Llorente favoured Tottenham.
PSG KEEPS SPENDING
Kylian Mbappe’s much-anticipated move to Paris Saint-Germain finally went through on Thursday evening, with Monaco loaning the 18-year-old forward until the end of the season along with an option to make the move permanent. No financial details were given by PSG in its statement Thursday, but the permanent deal would be from 2018 to 2022.
It means that PSG now has unprecedented status as effectively owning the world’s two most expensive players, with Brazil star Neymar bought for a world record £222 million ($329 million).
LIVELY LAZIO
Portugal winger Nani has moved on loan from Valencia to Lazio in a busy day for the club. Lazio was the most active of the top clubs in Italy on the final day for transfers as it also signed Nani’s teenage compatriots Pedro Neto and Bruno Jordao on loan from Braga.
Lazio has the right to buy Nani on a permanent basis at the end of the season.