Chelsea will come face-to-face with Antoine Semenyo when Bournemouth visit Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening. The Blues have cooled their interest in the winger after making an enquiry about him just before Christmas.
Semenyo has enjoyed a sensational season at the Vitality Stadium and bagged his eighth Premier League goal of the campaign during the Cherries’ 4-1 defeat to Brentford on Saturday. He has attracted interest from the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham but looks set to join Manchester City during the January transfer window.
Semenyo has a £65million release clause in his contract that needs to be triggered by January 10.
And on Monday, it was reported that Chelsea had joined the race to secure the player’s signature after he had piqued the Blues’ interest during his time at Bristol City.
However, it has since been revealed that Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca is happy to keep faith in the wingers he has already got at his disposal.
And Semenyo could inflict misery on Maresca’s side in midweek as he is likely to start for the Cherries in a Premier League encounter in west London.
Bournemouth will go into the match with the aim of turning round their fortunes following a dismal run of form. The Dorset club were second in the top flight in October but have fallen to 15th after picking up just four points in their last nine league matches.
Chelsea, meanwhile, will be hoping to get their season back on track after winning just once in their last five league encounters.
Following his side’s defeat to the Bees, Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola was asked whether his club would like to get the transfer fee for Semenyo as soon as possible in January.
And the Spaniard replied: “No, the more games Antoine can play for us, [the better]. If he can play years for us, it's much better. If it cannot be years, it can be months. If he can only play weeks, it is weeks, but the more time he plays with us, the better for us.
“Antoine's situation is quite clear. Antoine is a massive player for us and even in games like today, where probably he hasn't played well, he is always a threat to score and assist.
“Obviously I don't want to lose him. This is quite clear, but there are some situations that are not under my control. He will be available to play again in three days [against Chelsea] and then the next one. And I hope he plays a lot more with us.”