Chelsea receive Atletico Madrid response after launching bid for star with £101m release clause

Atletico Madrid have reacted after Chelsea reportedly sent them a £40million bid for Spain international Marcos Llorente.

The central midfielder, who can also play as a right-back, came through the ranks at Atletico’s fierce rivals Real Madrid. He became a part of their senior squad in summer 2016 and went on to make 39 first-team appearances for Los Blancos, following a loan spell at Alaves.

Llorente did what few players do in 2019 by swapping Real for Atletico. According to transfermarkt, Diego Simeone’s side paid £27million to complete his transfer.

Llorente has played 122 times for Atletico and helped them to win the La Liga title in 2020-21. He featured for 62 minutes in their league opener against Getafe on Monday, which ended in a 3-0 win.

He appears settled at the Wanda Metropolitano, while his contract with the club lasts until June 2027.

Despite this, Chelsea have apparently sent Atletico an offer to capture the Spaniard.

According to AS, it is worth £33.8m (€40m). This falls well below Llorente’s £101m (€120m) release clause.

Unsurprisingly, Atletico flatly rejected the Chelsea proposal. They view Llorente as a vital player and do not want to lose him, especially to a potential Champions League rival.

The Blues may come back with an improved offer for him. New owner Todd Boehly is keen to impress fans by bringing in more big names before the transfer window shuts.

However, Boehly and Chelsea may find it hard to agree personal terms with Llorente, even if a deal is reached with Atletico.

That’s because the versatile player is ‘excited’ about the new La Liga campaign. He knows he did not have the best season last time out and is aiming to put this right.

Due to this, Llorente is unlikely to enter contract discussions with Chelsea as he wants to stay in Madrid.

Chelsea need to lower the average age of their midfield. N’Golo Kante and Jorginho are 31 and 30 respectively, while Mateo Kovacic is 28.

The perfect way to do this would be to keep Conor Gallagher from the clutches of Newcastle. The Magpies apparently hope to sign him, either on loan or permanently.

While Boehly wants to spend money and bring in a top player like Llorente, it may be best just to rely on Gallagher. The Englishman proved he can shine in the Premier League during a loan spell at Crystal Palace last season.

He has bags of energy and can even get in amongst the goals, too. Last term, he found the net eight times for Palace.

Chelsea have spent £20m to capture Carney Chukwuemeka from Aston Villa. By relying on him and Gallagher, Thomas Tuchel can future-proof his midfield, without spending any more money on a star like Llorente.

Meanwhile, the Daily Mail have given an update on Christian Pulisic to Manchester United, and what the player will have to do before leaving Stamford Bridge.