Chelsea offered £8 million for a player Sunderland bought for €20 million. The answer, predictably, was no.
Sunderland have flatly rejected Chelsea’s bid for midfielder Granit Xhaka, making clear that their captain is not available at any price, let alone one that amounts to a steep discount on what they originally paid. The Black Cats signed the Swiss international from Bayer Leverkusen for €20 million, roughly £17.2 million, and handed him the armband immediately. Offering less than half that figure was always going to be a non-starter.
Why Chelsea came calling
The logic behind Chelsea’s interest isn’t hard to trace. New manager Xabi Alonso coached Xhaka during their time together at Bayer Leverkusen, where the two were part of a remarkably successful spell in the Bundesliga. Alonso clearly rates the 33-year-old and wanted to bring a familiar face into his new project at Stamford Bridge.
Xhaka still has two years remaining on his contract, which runs through 2028. That gives Sunderland enormous leverage in any negotiation, and they’ve made it abundantly clear they have no intention of using that leverage because there’s nothing to negotiate.
