Chelsea came very close to signing Kerim Alajbegović before the youngster chose Juventus, and their development plan appears to have worked against them.
Back in July, we covered Chelsea’s push for the then Bayer Leverkusen youngster. Xabi Alonso had even personally contacted the player and his club.
At that stage, Alonso reportedly believed spending €40m (£34.7m) on Alajbegović could prove a bargain. There was one catch. Chelsea couldn’t promise him an immediate place in their squad. And that proved to be the difference in the end.
Chelsea had already discussed loan
Writing for TuttoMercatoWeb, Raimondo De Magistris explains that Alajbegović was “very close” to Chelsea before Juventus stepped in.
The 18-year-old had already held his first talks with Alonso. Chelsea presented him with a medium to long-term development plan.
Napoli and Atalanta had also made contact for the youngster as a battle developed for his signature. However, De Magistris says Alajbegovic appeared destined for Chelsea before Juventus made their move.
That plan also involved potentially sending him out on loan before eventually bringing him into Alonso’s squad.
There was just too much competition in his position. Morgan Rogers is currently the first choice there after his huge summer move. And Juventus offered Alajbegović something different.
“They immediately provided him with important reassurances about his central role in the Juventus project,” De Magistris explains. That was enough to change the direction of the transfer.
Juventus eventually signed him from Bayer Leverkusen for a bit less than what Chelsea offered: €32m (£27.8m) plus bonuses.
Alonso’s plan ended up costing Chelsea
There’s an interesting link back to what was being reported in Germany in July. Alonso had personally spoken to Alajbegović and was happy for Chelsea to spend €40m (£34.7m) on him.
The manager felt the youngster’s value would only rise. Even if his development slowed, Chelsea apparently believed they could protect their investment.
However, Alonso was also honest about the immediate situation. A loan was already being discussed because there wasn’t a clear route into his team. And that appears to have been important.
On the other hand, Juventus could offer Alajbegović a more immediate role – which they did -, and Kenan Yildiz’s injury has since accelerated that process. The Bosnian scored against NEC on Thursday, opening his account for the Italian club.
Manager Luciano Spalletti was pleased with what he saw. The Juventus manager said: “Alajbegović is a young lad, a young man otherwise he’ll get offended. He needs experience. Today I saw him calmer. He made cleaner choices in his play and showed his quality.”
Chelsea clearly saw plenty in Alajbegović and were prepared to spend heavily on his potential. Months later, we now know their longer-term approach also helped convince him to go elsewhere.
