Liverpool, Chelsea ignite battle to sign deadly winger; Prem rival already failed with record bid
Liverpool and Chelsea have begun their respective pursuits of a free-scoring winger Brentford recently tried to sign with a club-record €43m bid, per reports.
Brentford set a new club record when making centre-half Nathan Collins their most expensive ever signing in July. Collins cost the Bees £23m when plucked from Wolves, though Thomas Frank’s side hoped the record wouldn’t stand for long.
Indeed, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano brought news of Brentford tabling a €43m bid for Fiorentina winger Nicolas Gonzalez in late-August. A “huge” salary offer was also put to the player.
However, Fiorentina had no intentions of selling the 25-year-old Argentine despite the sizeable bid. Fiorentina’s belief was Gonzalez is a player on an upwards trajectory and his value would soon explode.
Fast forward just a few months and the left-footed right winger is one of the most in-form players in Serie A.
Gonzalez has scored five goals and provided one assist in his first seven league matches for Fiorentina this season. The club’s decision to stand their ground and reject Brentford’s bid has already been justified.
However, according to a fresh update from Calciomercato, Fiorentina now face the unenviable task of fending off Liverpool and Chelsea.
Reds and Blues take first steps towards Gonzalez swoop
The Italian outlet states Liverpool and Chelsea have both sent scouts to Florence ‘on several occasions’. Their mission was to observe Gonzalez and given his stellar form this season, it stands to reason they were impressed.
Gonzalez only signed a new contract on improved terms on September 26. His current deal sees him under contract with Fiorentina until 2028.
That will strengthen Fiorentina’s bargaining position in the event Liverpool and/or Chelsea act on their interest.
As such, and with his excellent form in mind, Calciomercato claim Gonzalez is now valued at somewhere in the €55m-€60m range. That roughly equates to £48m-£52.4m.
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The price hike is likely to see Brentford ruled out of any future bidding war. The same cannot be said of Liverpool and Chelsea.
Liverpool may soon be on the lookout for a new left-footed right winger if Mohamed Salah is lured to Saudi Arabia in 2024.
Bayern Munich’s Leroy Sane is known to be in their sights, though so too is Gonzalez according to the Italian press.
