Chelsea are pushing to sign Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet before the end of the January transfer window and now, Rennes manager Habib Beye has broken his silence on the deal.
Liam Rosenior has identified the need for a central defender, and plans have been accelerated to bolster the Chelsea side with a top-class centre-back this month, instead of waiting until the summer window.
A three-man shortlist of Jacquet, Marcos Senesi and Jacobo Ramon has been drawn up, with the former the priority. Chelsea have an agreement with Jacquet, but are struggling to meet Rennes’ price tag.
How much would you be willing to pay for Jeremy Jacquet?💰
Rennes name Jeremy Jacquet price tag
Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images
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It is claimed that Rennes want as much as £60m for France U21 star Jacquet, who has only ever played 29 times for Rennes. Jacquet was suspended on Sunday as Rennes limped to a poor draw against Le Havre.
Habib Beye finally discusses possible Chelsea move for Jacquet
Currently manager at Rennes is former Newcastle United defender Habib Beye, and following Breel Embolo’s late equaliser for Les Rouges Et Noirs, Beye spoke to reporters asking about Jacquet’s future.
Jeremy Jacquet playing for Rennes
Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images
Beye made it clear he did not want to lose Jacquet and wants Rennes to be in a position to reject this kind of approach. But, the manager conceded that it is beyond his control and something could happen soon.
“I believe Jérémy is very important to our objectives, and if he were to leave, we would have to lower those objectives, because he’s a key player for us, one of the best on our team,” Beye told reporters.
“We have to be able to resist this kind of approach. There are several factors beyond my control in this matter. We’ll see what happens in the coming days,” Beye continued, as quoted by RMC Sport.
IMAGINE: You have the final say on Chelsea’s three-man centre-back shortlist. Who will you pick?
The three centre-back targets under consideration at Chelsea:
Jeremy Jacquet
Jacobo Ramon
Marcos Senesi
Đorđe Petrović and Marcos Senesi of Bournemouth
Photo by Robin Jones – AFC Bournemouth/AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images
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The current situation and chances of Chelsea signing Jacquet
As aforementioned, reports indicate Chelsea and Jacquet have already agreed personal terms, and now it is just a case of Chelsea managing to do a deal with Rennes. Chelsea are unwilling to pay £60m for him.
It does seem expensive and there is of course, the added Chelsea tax. But this is a player with no senior National Team caps, less than 30 appearances for Rennes and only just more than 60 club career matches.
French media claim Chelsea could reduce costs by including a player or two. Josh Acheampong and Andrey Santos have been touted as possible makeweights. But it does feel like Jacquet will join Chelsea.
Liam Rosenior is said to be a fan of Jacquet having come across the young Rennes defender while in Ligue 1 himself with Strasbourg. Certainly, he is the kind of player that Rosenior loves to work with.
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