Why didn’t Manu Koné join Premier League despite Chelsea and Roma verbal agreement | OneFootball

Manu Koné (25) came very close to becoming a Chelsea FC player. Faced with the complexity of the deal involving AS Monaco’s Lamine Camara (22), the Blues are said to have decided, at the very end of the transfer window, to step up their efforts to secure the Frenchman’s services.

A verbal agreement between the London club and AS Roma for €70m – €25m more than the initial sum demanded by the Italian side – was even reportedly reached, according to Foot Mercato. Xabi Alonso, keen to work with the midfielder, is said to have consulted his former player Kylian Mbappé (27) to gather information about his compatriot.

But the deal ultimately fell through due to the Giallorossi’s difficulty in finding a replacement for Koné, who had himself reached an agreement to join the Stamford Bridge side, having been turned down notably by AC Milan’s Youssouf Fofana (27) and Olympique de Marseille’s Pierre-Emile Højbjerg (31), and Gianpiero Gasperini’s refusal to let his 25-year-old player leave.

GFFN | Léo Aschi