“I was one hour away from joining Chelsea with a plane waiting for me”, “then I was told no” – Player reveal regrets of not joining Chelsea
Edson Alvarez, a midfielder for West Ham United, disclosed that he was close to signing a contract with Chelsea.
The Mexican international, who signed a £35 million contract to join West Ham from Ajax last summer, disclosed that he had a jet ready to take him away to sign the agreement. But it was halted by his previous club’s last-minute change of heart.
In a candid chat with Caliente TV, the 26-year-old, who has stepped into Declan Rice’s shoes in the West Ham midfield, shared: “In year three [at Ajax], I had to go to Chelsea, the plane was waiting for me at the airport – then Ajax told me, ‘You know what: you’re not going’.”
“Whether people believe it or not, it doesn’t make any difference to me, I’m the one who is here and the one who is living it. I was an hour away from getting on the plane and going to sign for Chelsea.”
“Ajax told me: ‘You’re not going’. So, you’re not leaving, what do you do? There’s no way you’re leaving”
With 42 appearances in 2023–24, Alvarez has been a revelation in the center of West Ham’s midfield. Chelsea has not held back in rebuilding their midfield over the previous 18 months, even though they did not acquire Alvarez.
Both Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez cost more over £100 million, and they also made large expenditures on Cesare Casadei, Romeo Lavia, Lesley Ugochukukwu, and Carney Chukwuemeka.