Chelsea and Arsenal have until July 15 to pay Jean Michaël Seri’s release clause

Nice midfielder Jean Michaël Seri is one of the hotter names, in general, in the current transfer market, and one of the few reasonable targets with whom Chelsea have actually been linked — though he does have an apparent medical condition that would make him at least think twice about transferring to a colder climate than the French Riviera.

There are of course plenty of others interested as well, including cross-town rivals Arsenal and even West Ham as well, not to mention teams in Italy, France, Spain, etc. That much interest could very well result in a bidding war. Unless somebody decides to pay the 27-year-old’s release clause.

There is one catch however, as revealed by his agent yesterday. The release clause expires in three weeks, on July 15 to be exact.

“Seri’s clause is €40m and it is valid until 15th July. After that Nice can demand any amount they want.”

-Franklin Mala; source: Radio CRC via Inside Futbol

The choice is thus clear for any of the interested bunch. If they want Seri, there is a straightforward, pain-free way to get past the initial transfer fee hurdle and have to worry about personal terms alone — which really shouldn’t pose much difficulty as most of the interested teams should be able to easily beat whatever his current wage packet may be at Nice.

But what Chelsea want is a mystery, and that uncertainty has spilled over into the transfer market already. Chelsea apparently asked Seri to wait before making any decisions, but we’ve seen others who weren’t too keen to play that game (Lemar, for example). Time waits for no man, and neither does a truncated transfer market.