Chelsea leading race to ‘HIJACK’ another Barcelona deal for 21-year-old winger
According to reports, Chelsea thinks they might have an advantage over Barcelona in the competition to sign Spain’s Nico Williams, a winger for Athletic Bilbao, this summer.
Given that the gifted 21-year-old is presently making waves with the Spanish national team at Euro 2024, it seems logical that there is a lot of interest in him ahead of the upcoming campaign.
Sport claims that even though Williams is said to favor a transfer to the Nou Camp, Chelsea may be in a better financial position than Barcelona to sign him.
Even though Williams appears to be a perfect upgrade over underperforming players like Mykhailo Mudryk and Raheem Sterling, it remains to be seen if Chelsea will be willing to break the bank for a more experienced player like Williams. Chelsea has invested enormous sums of money in top young players during the ownership of Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.
Williams transfer: Fabrizio Romano most recently joined Chelsea and Barcelona
In any case, other sources don’t seem to be as certain that teams will spend a lot of money on Williams this summer; Fabrizio Romano discussed this yesterday on CaughtOffside’s Debrief Podcast.
Romano says that Barca consider Williams one of their top targets, but that they also view it as a complicated deal to get done, while interested clubs from England are also tipped to turn to cheaper alternatives.
Williams may have a release clause at Athletic Bilbao, but Romano says his wages are also expensive, so it seems it’s not a given that anyone will end up paying up for him this summer.
Chelsea fans will surely hope their club can come up with the money, though, as Williams’ form at Euro 2024 will only have enhanced his reputation as someone who could end up being a smart investment for the present and future.