Arsenal look the favourites to land Nice midfielder Jean-Michael Seri but it appears that Swansea City have made the first move.
With Swansea City demanding a frankly obscene £50 million for Gylfi Sigurdsson, and rejecting a second Everton bid worth £45 million according to The Guardian, they should know that Nice were never going to sell key midfielder Jean-Michael Seri for a fraction of his price-tag this summer.
According to L’Equipe, Swansea made a bid of around £15 million for the Ivory Coast international. It’s fair to say that is some way off his release clause of £36 million.
Seri was arguably the best midfielder in France last season
The report adds that the Riviera side, who upset the odds to finish third in Ligue 1 last season with Seri starring in the centre of midfield, will let the 26-year-old leave if their asking price is met. However, with such a derisory offer on the table from The Swans, it appears hugely unlikely that Seri will be plying his trade at the Liberty Stadium next season.
L’Equipe reports that a move to Arsenal may be on the cards, however. The Gunners are reportedly showing genuine interest in the dynamic midfielder, who scored seven goals and assisted nine more in a sensational breakthrough campaign to help Nice qualify for the Champions League.
The report adds that North London neighbours Tottenham Hotspur, who are yet to sign a single player this summer, are also keeping a keen eye on the midfielder, who joined Nice from Pacos de Fereira for just £1 million in 2015.
Therefore, it appears that Swansea may be biting off more than they can chew attempting to land Seri, although his admission that he will not sign for a club which cannot guarantee first-team football mat give them hope. Spurs and Arsenal have midfields chock full of quality and it would be far from certain that Seri would start.
However, Swansea have never paid more than £15 million for a player and it appears unlikely that they will stump up the cash required to enter negotiations with Seri.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
