Chelsea are apparently losing belief that they will be able to sign Enzo Fernandez before the transfer deadline.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Dan Windle revealed that the conviction from the Stamford Bridge chain of command about buying Fernandez from Benfica is beginning to fade.
Chelsea’s faith in getting a deal done for the midfielder has gone through waves during the winter window.
They initially seemed sure the World Cup winner would be heading to London, only for Benfica to bat away their approaches.
Conversations about a transaction died down for a while, only to be reignited in the last few days of the month.
Is Enzo Fernandez to Chelsea going to happen?
Todd Boehly’s team set about getting the wheels in motion again, with Fernandez himself ready to become a Blue before too long.
Yet, the chance of adding the 22-year-old to Graham Potter’s squad is seemingly diminishing as the minutes tick by.
“Time is dragging on and confidence is waning, we are now hearing,” explained Windle.
“The issues we are hearing are what Chelsea are willing to pay up front. They want to pay a vast sum of money over a several instalments. What Benfica are digging in on is what Chelsea are willing to pay up front.”
The crux of the issue is Fernandez’s release clause.
Chelsea are happy to pay the £106m, but over a period of time rather than at once.
This has not sat well with Benfica, primarily their president Rui Costa, who want the whole fee paid immediately.
It appears that neither party want to budge, which suggests Fernandez won’t be landing in the Premier League after all.
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