Chelsea running out of time over Ake

Chelsea have inserted a buy-back clause in to the deal which saw Nathan Ake move to Bournemouth in 2017 which reportedly stands at £40 million. It was an important aspect of the deal with the defender currently attracting interest from several top clubs, both in the Premier League and on the continent. It allows Chelsea to re-sign the player for that amount, as well as to match any bid from any other suitor that Bournemouth eventually accept – unless the player himself refuses to return to Stamford Bridge.

However, as revealed by David Ornstein in his weekly column for The Athletic, the buy-back clause expires before the start of the 2020 summer transfer window. The Cherries would have been very happy when Chelsea were clamped down with a two-window transfer ban in the spring, which initially meant practically that the clause had been made void, but the Londoners have had their punishment halved and are able to activate it in January.

But if they don’t, they will have missed their chance.