Chelsea's initial move for Marc Guehi fell through amid concerns over the overall cost of moving the Crystal Palace captain to Stamford Bridge.
The first high-level talks about a possible return of Guehi, who started his career at Stamford Bridge, to return to Chelsea took place in early January and are still ongoing. Today, Mail Sport can take you into those discussions.
It was established that Palace would demand a fee of around £60 million for the England international, who has just 18 months left on his contract.
There was a feeling that an offer of between £45 million and £50 million would have been enough to lure Palace to the negotiating table.
Chelsea are in a good position to launch Guehi. By selling the defender to Palace for £18m in 2021, Chelsea included a 20 per cent sell-on clause and rights to match any transfer offer for the rival club.
Crucially, the sell-on clause was seen as an essential part of any transfer for Guehi, with the contractual quirk allowing Chelsea to effectively obtain a discount on the defender's transfer fee.
For example, if Chelsea had agreed a fee of £50 million for the 24-year-old, Stamford Bridge would have been entitled to a £10 million discount, bringing the price down to just £40 million.
That is understandably not an ideal scenario for Palace as they aim to get as much as possible for their prized asset.
While there were suggestions that Chelsea would agree to waive the sell-on clause to simplify negotiations, Palace's move to set an asking price not far off the £70 million they are looking for in the had demanded from Newcastle in the summer, would probably have taken the discount into account'.
Despite the costs, Chelsea have seriously considered launching an attack on Guehi this month, with the player said to be aware of his ex-employers' interest in him.
Trevoh Chalobah, who was on loan at Palace, emerged as a pawn in the talks between the two sides. Chelsea were keen to use Chalobah as an intermediary in a deal for Guehi, with the aim of reducing their out-of-pocket expenses. The Blues also raised the prospect of recalling Chalobah rather than fully pursuing Guehi, as Chelsea assessed every available option following Wesley Fofana's serious injury.
But in addition to the transfer fee, with or without Chalobah, Chelsea learned that Guehi's wages would be around £170,000 per week, which, given the salary structure implemented in the Todd Boehly/Clearlake era, makes the centre-back one of the highest paid players would make. at the club.
Chelsea were open to selling players this month with a view to funding their stake in Guehi, with Renato Veiga and Axel Disasi among the defenders the Blues are listening to offers.
But ultimately, the cost of any successful move for Chelsea so far has proven prohibitive, with well-placed sources insisting the west London side will suspend their interest unless the asking price drops.
Relations between Palace and Chelsea are said to have remained amicable, although Chelsea's decision this week to recall Chalobah from his season-long loan spell at Selhurst Park has frustrated senior officials at the south London club.
Senior Palace officials were unaware on Wednesday when news of Chelsea's decision to recall Chalobah from his loan deal broke.
Prominent executives at Selhurst were aware that Chelsea had raised the possibility of recalling Chalobah during talks over Guehi, but were caught out by their London rivals' eventual decision to halt Chalobah's loan deal following Wesley Fofana's injury.
In a further twist, well-placed sources have told Mail Sport that Chelsea officials spoke to their Palace colleagues very late on Saturday evening – just hours before Chalobah was lined up to play against Stockport – to inform them he could not feature.
Oliver Glasner, Palace's head coach, said after the FA Cup win over the League One team: 'It's not easy to explain.
'It was a contractual issue, we had to be careful. That's why he didn't play. I'm not a lawyer, but I was told it was better for him not to play in this round.
“I found out last night. It was internal (there was no contact from Chelsea).”
A new role for Myles Lewis-Skelly
The possible departures of Thomas Partey and Jorginho from Arsenal ahead of next season will open the door for Myles Lewis-Skelly to get opportunities in central midfield.
The academy graduate, just 18, has been a revelation for Gunners filling in at left-back this season. Yet the teenager came through at Arsenal as a central midfielder and Mail Sport understands Lewis-Skelly will be given more opportunities to play in his natural position next season.
Partey and Jorginho are both out of contract this summer and it is likely that both will leave the club, although sources are adamant no final decision has been made on their futures.
As Mail Sport revealed earlier this week, Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi is expected to arrive in the summer for £51 million to strengthen Mikel Arteta's midfield options.
And Lewis-Skelly is also poised to become one of Arsenal's midfield alternatives alongside Zubimendi, Declan Rice, Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard.
Lopetegui's demand to perform media duties
Julen Lopetegui fiercely demanded permission to hold his usual pre-match press conference last week, just hours before he was sacked by West Ham.
The Spaniard was relieved of his duties at the London Stadium last Wednesday after just eight months in charge, following a difficult start to the season, which was complicated by a fractious relationship with sporting director Tim Steidten and members of the playing squad.
But Lopetegui, despite his then impending sacking being one of the biggest unkept secrets in English football, begged club officials to allow him to hold his pre-match media briefing on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the FA Cup tie in To allow Aston Villa to proceed normally.
However, much to the 58-year-old's disappointment, the club stuck by their original decision to scrap the media briefing ahead of the former Wolves manager's sacking later that day.
Walker suitors eye a competitive price deal
Clubs interested in Manchester City captain Kyle Walker are hopeful they can get the defender on the cheap this month, following Pep Guardiola's public revelation that the full-back wants to leave.
There was some surprise outside the Etihad Stadium this week as Guardiola came out with the news that Walker had asked to leave the club.
AC Milan, Inter Milan and Saudi Pro League clubs have been linked with Walker this month.
And clubs keen to sign Walker are optimistic they can regain the right to a cheaper deal and want to use the City head coach's comments as a negotiating tool; believing that the comments indicate that Walker has no future at the prospective club at all.
Owners are conducting emergency checks during the Los Angeles fires
Premier League owners have carried out urgent checks on loved ones feared to be involved in the terrifying fires in Los Angeles.
Eleven of the top 20 clubs have levels of US ownership and Mail Sport has learned that some executives have made frantic calls to ensure friends and family are safe.
On Wednesday it was reported that 25 people had died, with at least 20 still missing, as a result of the disaster, while property had been destroyed.
Gabriel Jesus ACL injury spits sales plans
Arsenal's decision to sell Gabriel Jesus this summer appears to have been thwarted by his cruciate ligament injury.
The club are said to have listened to offers for the Brazil international in the summer, ahead of what will be a significant outlay on players, including a move for Real Sociedad midfielder Zubimendi.
But those plans have now been thrown into disarray after Arsenal confirmed he would undergo surgery after sustaining the serious injury during Sunday's defeat to Manchester United.
Recovery from such injuries can take up to a year, meaning the idea of selling Jesus this summer will most likely be shelved as the club concentrates their efforts on his recovery.
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