Fulham submitted a last-minute bid for 22-year-old AC Milan star Charles De Ketelaere who is all set to join Atalanta.
According toll Corriere dea Sera via Sport Witness, Fulham are keen on having Charles De Ketelaere in their ranks and had submitted a last-minute bid to acquire his services from AC Milan. But, their offer is not good enough to force Milan to break their agreement with Atalanta.
The 22-year-old Belgian youth international came through the ranks at Club Brugge before joining Milan last summer. Since making the move to the Italian giants, the attacking midfielder has featured in a total of 40 matches but he was on the pitch for less than 1500 minutes.
While he has a long-term future at the club, he is unlikely to get much game time next season. As a result, Milan are looking to loan him out for the upcoming campaign. Atalanta have been pushing for his signatures and already have an agreement in place with Milan.
The 22-year-old is all set to join them on a season-long for a fee of €3 million. And, they have agreed to cover his entire wages for the same duration. While both the clubs already have an agreement in place, Fulham still wanted to try their luck.
The Cottagers want to bolster their squad ahead of next season. Their manager Marco Silva wants more firepower in attack and is keen on having the Belgian youth international at his disposal.
Silva believes his arrival could help their cause as Ketelaere is capable enough to feature as an attacking midfielder, a winger, a second striker as well as a striker. As a result, Fulham submitted a last-minute offer to hijack the deal.
They submitted an official bid to AC Milan for his services. While their offer was tempting, it wasn’t good enough to force Milan to break their agreement with Atalanta. And, even the player prefers joining the Italian club over Fulham. The deal with La Dea is in the final stages and is expected to be completed in the coming days. Meanwhile, there is interest in the 22-year-old from elsewhere as well.
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JUST IN : Fulham set to cash in on Willian just two weeks after signing…
Is this the best bit of transfer business this summer? Fulham set to cash in on Willian just two weeks after signing him for free: report
Fulham could be set to make profit on Willian, who only re-signed for the club in the last few weeks
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Fulham could be about to receive a transfer fee for a player they signed for free less than three weeks ago, in what might just be the most bizarre/weirdest/best bit of transfer business this summer.
The Cottagers re-signed Willian on a one-year contract on July 17, with the club retaining the option of adding another year. The Brazilian spent last season at Fulham, but left following the expiry of his contract.
Nottingham Forest made him an offer, but Willian ultimately decided to return to Fulham. However, he could be on the move a lot sooner than expected, after receiving a proposal from Saudi Arabia.
According to The Athletic, Al-Shabab have offered Willian the chance to double his wages to over £200,000-a-week on a one-year contract, and are willing to pay a fee to bring him to the Middle East.
While the report suggests Fulham haven’t received an offer from Al-Shabab, the Premier League side will want a fee for the 34-year-old. Transfermarkt currently values Willian at £2.5m, considering his age and length of contract.
They could, therefore, make a healthy profit on an ageing player they managed to bring to the club for free just weeks ago. Willian might opt to stay at Fulham, however, as he’s clearly happy to stay in London – where he’s also played for Chelsea and Arsenal.
After signing for the club, Willian said: “I’m completely happy. Happy to sign one more year with Fulham. Happy to continue the work that I did last season with all my team-mates.”
Along with Willian, Fulham have also signed Calvin Bassey from Ajax and Raul Jimenez from Wolves this summer. Aleksandar Mitrovic looks destined to leave, though, with the Serbian striker set to force a move through amid heavy interest from Saudi Arabia as well.
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Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture’s websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.
