Ealier today, rumors of AFC Bournemouth returning with a transfer bid for Nathan Aké were dismissed out of hand as something spectacularly silly. Chelsea just recalled Aké from Bournemouth after all, and gave him the start in Saturday’s FA Cup match. While the loan recall came as a bit of a shock to both the Cherries and Aké himself, the fact that Conte opted to bring him back into the fold should bode well for the youngsters future.
But Aké clearly had made an impression on Eddie Howe & Co as well, and according to the Independent’s Jack Pitt-Brooke, Bournemouth have indeed returned with a rather sizable surprise bid.
Exclusive: Bournemouth stun Chelsea with £18million bid for defender Nathan Ake - move is up to the player https://t.co/YTYsX0VNXX pic.twitter.com/U0F1IPt0r0
— Indy Football (@IndyFootball) January 31, 2017
Chelsea are apparently so stunned by this offer that we’re letting young Nathan make up his own mind.
Trouble is of course that the move would leave Chelsea short-handed at the back, which is exactly the situation we wanted to avoid by recalling the 21-year-old. The earlier rumors made some tiny bit of sense given Chelsea’s links with Sead Kolašinac, but those rumors fell through and hopefully these will as well.
Surely, if Aké’s worth £18m now, he’ll be worth just as much if not more later so there’s no rush to sell. Not to mention, he just might carve out a career with Chelsea, against all odds. But if it’s truly up to the player, it wouldn’t surprise me if he opted to go back to the where he was clearly enjoying himself in the first half of the season.
Stay tuned...