Manchester United and Arsenal refused to pay the loan fee for Chelsea forward Joao Felix.
Chelsea recently announced the signing of Felix on loan from Atletico Madrid for the rest of the season. Fabrizio Romano confirmed to CaughtOffside via his Substack column that Chelsea would pay a loan fee of around €11m, a fairly hefty figure to pay for a temporary deal.
Now, in his latest column, Romano has confirmed that Manchester United and Arsenal didn’t make a late move due to being unwilling to pay the excessive loan fee.
Due to Chelsea’s poor league position, Todd Boehly clearly felt that they had to get this attacking signing over the line. The fee may be a little excessive, but Chelsea needed attacking reinforcements and Felix is a young, exciting forward who will be looking to prove himself after fracturing his relationship with Diego Simeone.
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Felix’s versatility in attack could make him a useful option for Graham Potter. Felix has played as a central striker, off the left of a front three as well as in a bit of a free role behind the striker.
Potter has tried to implement multiple different styles since moving to Chelsea, so having a player capable of playing in a host of positions will be ideal for the manager.