Red Bull Salzburg star Karim Adeyemi has insisted it was ‘normal’ for him to reject the chance to join Chelsea.
The 18-year-old is currently shining for Leipzig in Austria, having returned from a successful spell with FC Liefering last season.
He’s been with the Austrian side since July 2019, when he made a £3.02m move from Unterhaching’s U19 side.
Back in 2018, though, he had the chance to make a big move to England, with Chelsea offering him and his family the chance to travel to their training complex at Cobham ahead of a potential move.
He ultimately turned that down and elected to go to Salzburg in search of first-team football and the potential of following the successful path laid out by the likes of Erling Haaland and Sadio Mane.
He’s spoken of rejecting Chelsea several times already and has again insisted it was a normal reaction for him when asked about the situation in a recent interview.
“First of all, it is important to me that I play regularly,” he told Sport 1.
“My focus is currently on the Austrian league. I am very happy that I have so much time here. I am fully focused on the task in Salzburg.
“I don’t know how the clubs work; after all, I don’t know the people responsible. But I would choose the club where I feel most comfortable.
“It’s not that difficult to stay on the ground. I haven’t achieved anything yet, even though I’m now playing in the first division in Austria.
“But I find it – in quotation marks – quite normal that I do not answer. My parents and family support me a lot in this. My old Unterhaching club taught me that too.
“But even at Salzburg we players are kept on the ground. There is also no reason why I should rise above other people. All people are equal.”
