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Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Estevao Willian's minutes
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Image of Bournemouth's Alex Scott looking off camera during a match against Liverpool, with a news overlay about him potentially being on sale in January
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A £100m fee will be required for the England star, after Chelsea had agreed a £47m fee for Lamine Camara. Now, it has emerged that a £39m Premier League signing rejected bigger clubs in the summer.
READ MORE: Tim Sherwood predicts Harry Kane’s next club and mentions Chelsea in his analysis
Brentford’s Jordan Henderson replacement hints at Chelsea links
Jordan Henderson has quickly emerged as a fan favourite at Stamford Bridge after his two goals against Bournemouth on Saturday, even if Peter Crouch has criticised him for touching the badge after scoring.
Amid the noise that Henderson was joining Chelsea, Brentford moved quickly. They spent £39m to sign Mali international Mamadou Sangare from Lens, a player who had been linked with a move to Chelsea.
A graphic showing Jordan Henderson's match statistics (goals, assists, key passes and pass completion rate) against for Chelsea FC against Bournemouth. Image shows Jordan Henderson celebrating.
Credit: Photo by Chris Lee – Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Speaking to Sky Sports this week, Sangare admits he rejected bigger clubs to join Brentford. While he does not name Chelsea or any other sides out of respect, Chelsea may well have been an interested party.
“Yeah, it’s true [rejecting ‘elite’ clubs for Brentford]. But I’m not going to give any names, out of respect. There were a lot of clubs. For me, the most important thing was to know where I could progress.
“Brentford was the best place for my development. A coach who really wanted me was something that was important to me. That’s why I chose Brentford,” Sangare confirmed in an interview with Sky Sports.
Henderson or Sangare? Chelsea have made the right move
Sangare has made a solid start to life at Brentford, even if he has only been a substitute for The Bees in their last couple of Premier League games. Against Chelsea, Sangare came on for the last 20 minutes.
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2026-27 stats Jordan Henderson (Chelsea) Mamadou Sangaré (Brentford)
Pass Accuracy 82.8% 79.9%
Accurate Passes / 90 48.0 35.8
Line-Breaking Passes 13 4
Chances Created 2 0
Recoveries / 90 6.0 4.8
Tackles / 90 1.0 4.3
Fouls Committed / 90 0.0 2.1
Had Chelsea been presented with a straight shootout between Henderson and Sangare, well, they have made the right choice. Sangare is a good player, but at £39m, he is a risk and might not be a success.
For exactly zero pounds, Henderson adds immediate quality and experience when it was needed most at Chelsea. A top-quality player, a manager on the pitch, Henderson was the right move over Sangare.