Chelsea owner Boehly holds secret transfer meeting that may grant Mbappe request
Chelsea owner Todd Boehly met Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi with the transfer of Neymar discussed, it has been claimed.
Boehly reportedly flew into the French capital on Tuesday ahead of PSG’s Champions League clash against Bayern Munich, which the home side lost by a single goal. The Parisians were outplayed for the majority of the tie at the Parc des Princes stadium as Kingsley Coman’s strike early in the second half settled the first leg of the Round of 16 tie.
Neymar endured another frustrating evening as he was largely anonymous throughout the encounter as PSG failed to get a foothold in the game. The Brazilian was among the delegation of PSG stars to lead an apology to the club’s ultras after the match ended.
Neymar is the most expensive footballer of all time after PSG signed the superstar from Barcelona in a stunning £200million move in 2017. The 31-year-old has netted 117 goals in 172 appearances for the French club but there has been a lingering sense that he has failed to hit the huge expectations that many predicted and Le Parisien now report Chelsea owner Boehly has asked Al-Khelaifi about his availability.
The future of Neymar at the club has come under increasing scrutiny this season amid his ongoing feud with star attacking partner Kylian Mbappe. The French ace is believed to be keen on the club to cash-in on the Brazilian.
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PSG boss Christophe Galtier moved to tackle the issue head-on by staging a first-team meeting in which the two were rebuked and apologised, while Lionel Messi acted as a ‘mediator’ to help quell the ongoing discontent between the pair.
Neymar and Mbappe have not seen eye-to-eye at PSG this seasonHave Your Say! Would Neymar be a good signing for Chelsea? Tell us what you think here.
The fallout did not stop there, as Neymar went on to 'like' two social posts that slammed Mbappe over the episode, including a post that said the Frenchman “controlled” the club. That comment was within the context of reports claiming that Mbappe would hold great sway in the club's sporting decisions as part of his new three-year contract extension with the Ligue 1 champions.
Boehly oversaw a notable summer transfer spend with multiple big-money arrivals including Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly, Wesley Fofana, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Carney Chukwuemeka and Marc Cucurella. Yet that spending was matched once again in a remarkable January splurge.
The Blues signed Mykhaylo Mudryk, who arrived in a deal worth up to £87m while they also completed the signing of PSV forward Noni Madueke alongside bringing Joao Felix in on a loan deal for the remainder of the campaign.
Neymar has not had an entirely happy campaign in Paris (Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)They were joined by defender Benoit Badiashile arriving from Monaco, a deal being concluded to sign right-back Malo Gusto from Lyon, the signings of midfielder Andrey Santos and striker David Datro Fofana and then, on transfer deadline, the British club record signing of Enzo Fernandez.
Boehly has spent just shy of £550million in transfer fees since taking charge at Stamford Bridge as his squad has been transformed. However, they are still light on central attacking players – with Felix set to leave when his loan expires at the end of the campaign with Aubameyang also expected to be moved on.
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