Chelsea make opening transfer offer for Arsenal-linked forward | Football
Chelsea have reportedly had an offer turned down for highly rated Saint-Etienne forward Djylian N’Guessan.
N’Guessan turned professional in November 2024 and since gone from strength to strength in Saint-Etienne’s first-team, establishing himself as one of the brightest young talents in France.
Though aged just 17, N’Guessan was called up to represent France at the Under-20 World Cup earlier this year, where Les Bleus reached the semi-finals.
N’Guessan missed the last of France’s penalties in the side’s painful shootout defeat to Morocco but his reputation has only grown in the intervening months, with top teams in the Premier League beginning to circle.
According to French newspaper L’Equipe, Todd Boehly’s BlueCo consortium are determined to add N’Guessan to their enormous player portfolio but failed with their opening €8 million bid for the winger.
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Chelsea signed Mathis Amougou from Saint-Etienne last winter before sending the midfielder to Strasbourg and it’s believed BlueCo may have similar plans for N’Guessan.
It’s claimed N’Guessan has no intention of extending his current contract with Saint-Etienne and the French club ‘have therefore decided to sell one of the most promising players of his generation’.
The report adds that while there is a strong chance N’Guessan will complete a move to Stamford Bridge next month, Saint-Etienne are holding out for a fee of €12.5m (£11m) from Chelsea for the winger.
N’Guessan, whose father Dany spent the majority of his playing career in English football, is also thought to be on the radar of Arsenal and Brentford.
The attacker’s younger brother recently left Saint-Etienne to join Lyon.
N’Guessan’s current deal with Saint-Etienne runs through to June 2027.
‘He is a fantastic player and football appears to be in his blood,’ Saint-Etienne head coach Eirik Horneland recently said of N’Guessan.
‘He is a quiet boy, but in the box, stone cold, with excellent ball control and an amazing finish.
‘To see him play gave me confidence in our youth academy. He is a young player with potential, and I value him highly.’
On the moment he learned just how young his team-mate was in training, Saint-Etienne midfielder Pierre Ekwah said: ‘I didn’t know his age ahead of my first practice with the team.
‘When I found out his age… wow! I was very surprised.’
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Chelsea make opening transfer offer for Arsenal-linked forward | Football
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