Chelsea’s €40m Bid for Alajbegovic Backed by Alonso’s Personal Call

Xabi Alonso has gone direct – personally picking up the phone to pitch Chelsea to Bayer Leverkusen’s Kerim Alajbegovic, with a €40m package on the table and us firmly in pole position. Frankly, this is exactly the kind of hands-on recruitment approach we’ve been waiting for at Stamford Bridge.

If you enjoy Chelsea News coverage and want to see more of it, add us as a preferred source on Google to make us a favourite and see more of our content.

Get Football News Germany, citing Kicker, report that Chelsea’s offer for Leverkusen attacker Kerim Alajbegovic totals €40m once bonuses are included. Kicker further report that Alonso has spoken with the 18-year-old directly, outlining a personal development plan that could initially see the Bosnian international loaned to a club in one of Europe’s top leagues.

Alonso goes personal – and Chelsea’s seriousness is written all over it

There is a version of this story where Chelsea’s interest in Alajbegovic is just another line on the transfer tracker. This is not that version. When the manager picks up the phone himself, it tells you everything about how seriously we’re pursuing this one.

Alonso knows Leverkusen inside out. He built the unbeaten Bundesliga title-winning side there before taking the Chelsea job, and his relationship with the club – and presumably with Alajbegovic’s entourage – gives us a recruitment edge that no other interested party can replicate. Juventus can offer prestige. We’re offering the man who shaped the environment the kid has been developing in.

Kicker report that no contractual talks have yet taken place between Alajbegovic’s representatives and Chelsea – those discussions are only expected to begin once the clubs reach a fee agreement. The player, according to the report, finds Alonso’s vision attractive. That is not nothing.

€40m for a teenager who hasn’t played a senior minute for Leverkusen – so why are we doing it?

Alajbegovic is 18, holds 23 caps for Bosnia and Herzegovina, and has never made a competitive senior appearance for Leverkusen. Leverkusen originally sold him to Salzburg for approximately €2m before exercising an €8m buyback – so a €40m sale would represent an extraordinary flip without him kicking a ball in anger for die Werkself. That kind of market movement tells you exactly what the industry thinks of his ceiling.

The proposed pathway is a loan first – sensible, given that the €138m we’ve just spent on Morgan Rogers means the attacking picture at the Bridge is already crowded at the top end. We’ve shown this summer we’re willing to invest at the €40m mark for elite young talent, and the loan-then-integrate model is a legitimate one if the destination club is right.

Frankly, the bigger concern is that we leave this one sitting too long. Juventus are reportedly in the picture, and while Alonso’s personal involvement gives us a clear edge, uncontested transfers don’t stay uncontested forever.

What happens next – and why Leverkusen won’t drag this out

Alajbegovic reports for Leverkusen pre-season on Monday following his World Cup break, though Kicker note the club intend to keep him away from the main squad to avoid an injury disrupting the anticipated deal. That tells you Leverkusen are as motivated to complete this as we are.

Alonso has been shaping this squad aggressively, and Alajbegovic fits neatly into a strategy of landing elite-ceiling teenagers before their market value becomes genuinely untouchable. Get the clubs to an agreement, let the personal terms follow – that’s the sequence Kicker have laid out, and there’s no obvious reason it shouldn’t move quickly. We’ll take it.

In other news…

Xabi Alonso delivered his first words as Chelsea manager – here’s what he said and what it signals for the rebuild.

Four players shown the door already – Alonso’s squad overhaul is well underway.

Chelsea confirm Geovany Quenda signing – the €40m benchmark being set again.

DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL CHELSEA NEWS APP FOR ALL THE LATEST UPDATES – STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE!

Want more Chelsea content? Check out the Chelsea News podcast for the latest discussion and analysis.