Bakayoko? Check.
Sidibé? Check.
Fabinho? Check.
Mendy? Check.
Lemar? Check.
Who else is left?
Mbappe? But he’s barely out of kindergarten (plus, like Christian Eriksen, he’s already rejected Chelsea once as a trialist). Boschilia? Just tore his ACL. Bernardo Silva? DING-DING-DING-DING! Who’s the big winner!? Come on down, son. Let us complete the sticker album set.
So, this one’s from Mourinho/Mendes sock puppet Duncan Castles, writing for The Sunday Times, and claiming that Chelsea are “chasing” the £70m/€80m-rated Bernardo Silva. No points for guessing which agency Silva’s signed with, by the way.
Chelsea pursue €80m Bernardo Silva. #CFC #ASMFC https://t.co/gLLsuALqVP pic.twitter.com/05hhvNtZZf
— Duncan Castles (@DuncanCastles) February 19, 2017
Per Castles’ report, Monaco (i.e. Mendes) believe that a “money-spinning auction may develop” for the 22-year-old’s services this summer, and by planting such reports, they are certainly laying a good foundation. Other than Chelsea, the names Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Spurs (Spurs??) are mentioned. No PSG? No Juventus? No Bundesliga clubs? Actually, that last one makes sense; there’s no bargain for Bayern to find here.
Cynicism aside, Bernardo is a quality player, to say the least, and he’d find a good home at any of Europe’s biggest clubs. But €80m is a bit much, even in today’s market.