Dutch agent Nathan van Kooperen has revealed Chelsea ‘wanted to go very far’ to sign Edson Álvarez, a year before he ended up at West Ham United.
Van Kooperen has been speaking to ESPN, relayed by Voetbal Primeur, about the player’s failed move to Stamford Bridge and Chelsea’s efforts to get him before he ended up in the Premier League.
Álvarez had been impressing for several years in the Eredivisie with Ajax following a €15m move from América in July 2019, establishing himself as a key player in his four years at the club.
He eventually left for West Ham in a €38m deal last summer but had found himself increasingly linked with a move away from the club before that point, particularly the previous summer.
That year saw Chelsea pushing hard to get his signing in a busy summer of signings under new owner Todd Boehly, with the player one of several who appeared to be on his way out.
A deal could not be reached, and he eventually ended up staying, later revealing his disappointment at how things had failed to work out how he wanted it to.
He eventually got his move to the Premier League with the Hammers and has been impressing since he arrived, but things could have been very different, at least according to Van Kooperen.
“Chelsea wanted to go very far,” he said.
“They wanted to do everything they could to bring him to Chelsea. Ajax just had no replacement ready, so they did not want to cooperate. They thought Champions League football was very important. They went up to €60m.”
