Chelsea take interest in Spain defender, Man United competing for signature

Spain international Aymeric Laporte gave an interview six months into his time in Saudi Arabia complaining of the conditions, and it has been clear for much of his spell with Al-Nassr that he would be keen to return to Europe. Once again the former Manchester City man will attempt to make a return.

Over the past year, Laporte has been heavily linked with a number of moves, including Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid through defensive injury crises, while Olympique Marseille were also in talks to sign Laporte. The problem is perhaps that Al-Nassr are not willing to facilitate a move, and are trying to recover as much of the €27m that they spent on him, as per ED. Laporte has made it clear he will consider offers from Europe.

The same outlet say that Athletic Club are yet to make contact with Laporte, despite him being one of their top targets. Ernesto Valverde is keen on Laporte, as Athletic return to the Champions League. Their intention was to try and pull off a deal for €10-15m for Laporte, who has just a year left on his deal. Currently he is earning €15m per year, a figure Laporte will not get close to in terms of salary.

El Chiringuito have also confirmed that Athletic are yet to position themselves with Laporte, but that interest is on the rise. Galatasaray, Fenerbahce, Napoli and Manchester United have all presented offers to Laporte’s agent, and now Chelsea have taken an interest in him too. It would be something of a surprise if Chelsea went for the 31-year-old, given they generally focus on signing young players.

It was something of a surprise that Laporte continued to be the starting option for Luis de la Fuente and Spain after his move to Saudi Arabia, but Laporte was left out of their Nations League final four squad. He has been dropped from the Al-Nassr side too, suggesting a move is very much on the agenda for club and player.