Nottingham Forest have now opened talks with Chelsea over the potential transfer of left-back Emerson Palmieri, as Steve Cooper strives to rival interest from Serie A side Atalanta.
Nottingham Forest have now opened talks with Chelsea to sign Emerson Palmieri
According to the Evening Standard, Nottingham Forest and Atalanta have both made initial approaches to Chelsea to register their interest in Emerson Palmieri. The Italian is eager to leave Stamford Bridge over the final weeks of the transfer window, but is yet to seal a deal.
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Emerson hopes to secure a move after Thomas Tuchel signed Marc Cucurella for £62m off Brighton & Hove Albion. The Spaniard’s arrival in west London has seen Emerson slip down the German’s pecking order to possibly be fourth, behind Marcos Alonso and Ben Chilwell.
A move within the Premier League or a return to Serie A is the most likely route away from Stamford Bridge for Emerson. The 28-year-old has attracted further admirers back in Italy over the past few years, and has remained a target for Atalanta after impressing with Lyon.
The Ligue 1 team hired Emerson on loan last season, during which the 27-cap international featured 36 times. He also scored once and laid on two assists across all competitions with Les Gones, having enjoyed a full campaign as Lyon’s predominantly first-choice wing-back.
Nottingham Forest sound out swoop as Thomas Tuchel considers exit
Tuchel would consider keeping Emerson at Chelsea this summer with Alonso likely to leave for Barcelona. AS report the Spaniard should move to the Camp Nou next week and make his debut against Real Sociedad, with talks nearing a conclusion for an €8m (£7m) transfer.
But Tuchel accepts Emerson will struggle to feature regularly ahead of Cucurella or Chilwell if he does stay at Chelsea. So, the Blues are willing to consider proposals to sell the £75k-a-week star, who still has two years to run on his contract, to raise some late-window funds.
Nottingham Forest have already spent big on the back of securing promotion via the play-offs, before informing Chelsea of Steve Cooper’s interest in Emerson. But the Blues would struggle to get the City Ground side to match the £24.5m fee they paid Roma back in 2018.
Chelsea agreed to spend an initial £17.5m on a then 23-year-old in the mid-season window under Antonio Conte. Yet no manager has ever named Emerson as the first-choice, despite Tuchel praising what Emerson offers at Stamford Bridge during 2021 before joining Lyon.
“He is training with an unbelievable effort,” Tuchel said, via quotes by Yahoo. “He is one of the nicest guys you can imagine. He’s always friendly, with unbelievable qualities.
“It was necessary to give him a reward and give him some minutes as a thank you for his attitude. It is the perfect example.”
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