Chelsea in fierce €25m race for powerful 22-year-old

Chelsea are in a three way battle with Arsenal and Barcelona in their pursuit of Sofiane Boufal according the highly regarded British media source, The Observer.

They say:

Chelsea and Arsenal are both in contention to sign Sofiane Boufal from Lille but face competition from Barcelona and Atlético Madrid for the Morocco forward.

In a classic representation of just how crazy the money has become in football, this is a player who only signed for Lille last January – for just €4m.

The report states that the player is regarded by his club as likely to leave Lille this summer and the main question is where.

The allure of Barcelona is a clear attraction. But the powerful attacking midfielder, who was born in France but plays international football for Morocco, may prefer the pace and the promise of first-team action that could be more likely to come with a move to England.

Sofiane Boufal has been a revelation in his short time at Lille playing 43 league games and scoring 14 goals since his move from French minnows Angers.

At 22 he has much room for development but could already expect to get into the Chelsea and Arsenal first teams – Arsenal are also linked with a move for the player and Arsene Wenger’s French connections may yet see him move into pole position to sign the player this summer.

Boufal is a wonderful, athletic young footballer who plays the game with real drive and freedom. He has all the attributes to be a top player in England and The Premier League would be lucky to count him as a member.