Wesley Fofana won’t play against his prospective employers Leicester City on Saturday because Chelsea is apparently considering another offer for the defender.
Since losing out on Jules Kounde to Barcelona last month, Thomas Tuchel’s club has made Fofana one of their priority targets. They have already had multiple bids for the 21-year-old rejected.
According to Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers, the Frenchman was training separately from the first squad, who has consistently refused to approve Fofana’s departure.
Last weekend’s 2-1 Premier League loss to Southampton also saw Fofana sit out for the Foxes, and Rodgers afterwards said the defender wasn’t in the proper frame of mind to play.
And Fofana will not be at Stamford Bridge in Leicester’s next outing, as Rodgers declared: “He won’t be available for the weekend. He has trained with our under-23 squad.
“For me, it’s always about the commitment and when the players are ready to commit to the ethos of the team. If they’re not in the right frame of mind, we have to move on. The window will shut and then things will become clearer.”
Asked whether Leicester expected to field another offer for Fofana, Rodgers said: “I’m not sure. My concentration is really with the players that we have and the team.
“I can’t lose energy thinking so much about it, it’ll be between the clubs. We have to continue to work with what we have.”
If Fofana joins Chelsea before the transfer window clSupposees next week, Leicester will likely receive a fee comparable to w. In that case, they accepted from Manchester United for Harry Maguire in 2019 – reported to be £80million.
However, Rodgers does not see Fofana’s situation as similar to that of Maguire, adding: “No, it was totally different.
“I was aware over the course of the summer that that [Maguire’s departure] could happen.
“Harry, in terms of his behaviour and his focus for the club, he was fantastic right until the last minute, then he moved on. It was different. Our focus is with the team.”
Leicester is one of five Premier League teams without a win after three matches of the new campaign. It is yet to make a single outfield addition in the transfer window, with their move for Cardiff City goalkeeper Alex Smithies representing their only action in the market to date.
Rodgers remains hopeful he will welcome new additions to the King Power Stadium in due course, although they may be facilitated by departures.
“Hopefully that can be the case,” he added. “It would be perfect for the team, to improve the squad. Everyone knows the situation; until that changes, we work with what we have.
“We’re looking at a few players [leaving] in order to bring some in. That’s been the model of the club, in terms of releasing funds.”