Antoine Semenyo looks set to be the next Premier League player to be sold for a huge transfer fee. However six years ago, Chelsea turned down the chance to sign him for just £2million.
Semenyo is widely expected to leave Bournemouth in the January transfer window thanks to a £65million release clause in his current contract. As a result, clubs including Man City, Man United, Liverpool and Tottenham have been putting in the groundwork with regards to a potential deal.
It seems that Pep Guardiola's side are leading the way with GIVEMESPORT sources understanding that he's named Man City as his preferred destination for that £65m move.
Chelsea Turned Down Chance To Sign Semenyo For £2m
Leicester City's Marc Albrighton in action with Newport County's Antoine Semenyo
Six years is a long time in football and in that time, the price that clubs are willing to pay for Antoine Semenyo is a staggering 65 times higher.
A product of Bristol City's youth set-up, Semenyo made his debut for the Robins on the final day of the 2017/18 campaign before heading out on loan to Newport County in search of regular game time. By January 2019, the forward had scored six goals in 31 games to alert Chelsea to his talents.
According to a report from the Daily Mail in January 2019, the Blues made an offer worth £1million for the player with the view to him linking up with the club's under-23s side. With Bristol City wanting £2million for the player, the deal ultimately came to nothing.
Semenyo's Rise Has Been Meteoric Since Then
semenyo bournemouth
Interspersed with a mixed loan spell at Sunderland, Semenyo went on to make his mark at Bristol City, scoring 21 goals and providing 21 assists in 125 appearances for the Robins before earning a £10million move to Bournemouth in January 2023.
In two years since then on the south coast, the forward has scored 30 goals and provided 13 assists in 105 matches for the Cherries, with 40 goal contributions in 97 Premier League games. He's also scored three goals in 32 international appearances for Ghana.
Currently, the third-top goalscorer in the Premier League this season, the potential of a £65million move to Man City in January seems like shrewd business and a deal that, with hindsight, makes Chelsea's 2019 transfer snub unthinkable.
With the Blues among the clubs who were interested in signing Semenyo in the present day, there's no doubt that the recruitment team at Stamford Bridge may well be kicking themselves on this one.
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