The Granit Xhaka saga appears to be over following talks with Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso.
Granit Xhaka has reaffirmed his commitment to Sunderland following crunch talks.
Xabi Alonso had aggressively pushed for a reunion with his former Bayer Leverkusen general to inject much-needed leadership into Stamford Bridge.
However, Chelsea’s opening £8 million bid was swiftly rejected, with the Black Cats branding the lowball offer disrespectful. And Xhaka was initially tempted by the prospect of working with Alonso again, but he’s set to lead Sunderland into their historic first European campaign in over 50 years.
Is John Terry right? Would Emma Hayes have done a better job with Chelsea than Liam Rosenior?🤔
Granit Xhaka tells Xabi Alonso he won’t be joining Chelsea
According to Di Marzio, Granit Xhaka has personally confirmed to Xabi Alonso that he will not be joining Chelsea this summer, despite their attempts.
Ultimately, Chelsea were never going to get near the kind of fee that Sunderland wanted for Xhaka, having submitted bids in and around £10 million, which was even less than the Black Cats spent on the Switzerland midfielder when he joined last summer.
Xhaka kept it classy and refused to speak personally about his future at the World Cup.
“That’s not my job. That’s what I have my management for. I want to concentrate fully on the World Cup.”
However, deep down, Xhaka will feel disappointed, as everything suggested that he was pushing for a move to reunite with Alonso.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
