Chelsea and Manchester City both are interested in young Wolverhampton Wanderers left-back Rayan Ait Nouri. However, Wolves have slapped a 45 million pounds on the youngster.
Thomas Tuchel reportedly likes the player and is after a new left-back this summer. Ben Chilwell’s time at Chelsea has been injury-prone while backup option Marcos Alonso is also looking extremely likely to leave the Stamford Bridge for Barcelona this summer.
The Blues might also lose their captain Cesar Azpilicueta to Barcelona this summer as well while Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger have already left following the expiry of their contracts. As a result, Chelsea are vulnerable at the back and there’s a pressing need to sign more defenders. Ait Nouri has emerged as the number 1 contender for the left-back slot.
The Blues were initially interested in Brighton’s Marc Cucurella. However, the Spaniard is on City’s radar and the Premier League champions are set to officially bid for him very soon. Ait Nouri is an alternative, cheaper option who is also versatile and can play in a wing-back role.
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However, the Sun have now reported that Wolverhampton Wanderers will not allow him to leave easily. They have slapped a hefty price tag on him and any club that wants to prise the highly rated 21-year-old away from the Molineux Stadium will have to cough up 45 million pounds.
Ait Nouri has been quite impressive during his time with Wolves so far. He has scored twice and has also made seven assists since moving to the club in 2020.
He is also being monitored by Premier League champions Manchester City in a case Cucurella’s move fails to materialize. Pep Guardiola has prioritized signing a new left back this summer as his only options in that position are not naturals, but makeshift left backs Joao Cancelo and Oleksandr Zinchenko. The Ukrainian also seems to be on the way out of the Etihad Stadium this summer with City hopeful about selling him to a prospective buyer.
Alternatively, if Cucurella does join City, Brighton will look to replace him with Ait Nouri. However, they are not too willing to meet Wolves’ valuation of the player and will be looking to get the deal done in cheap.
