Chelsea have sent long-term transfer target Wesley Fofana to the United States to complete his medical, say reports.
The 21-year-old Frenchman, who has been strongly linked with a move away from Leicester for large periods of this summer’s window, looks finally set to leave the King Power.
After numerous offers from Chelsea were rejected, including an opening bid of £63 million, the Foxes have finally accepted a fee of around £70 million for the defender, according to The Athletic.
Those terms was agreed in the latter stages of last week but a deal to sign Fofana will not be officially completed for another ‘couple of days’ after Chelsea sent the player to New York for a medical.
So why has Fofana travelled to the US to complete medical checks? According to journalist David Ornstein, the club’s new owner, Todd Boehly, is looking for ‘additional peace of mind’ following Fofana’s unfortunate run of injury problems.
The defender missed seven months of action last season with a broken leg and a dislocated ankle.
In an interview with Football Insider, medical expert Ben Dinnery said Fofana’s injury history will not deter Chelsea from snapping him up.
“The biggest injury was the fracture-dislocation of his ankle,” says Dinnery.
“He returned from that long-term problem and helped shore up that Leicester defence. There were some outstanding performances when you consider the serious nature of the injury.
“Chelsea will be well aware of the injury. It will be part of the focus in the medical if that were ever to come about. But if they are satisfied with that and he comes through the tests, I don’t see any long-term issues with the player.
“He has picked up a few muscular issues since he’s returned but that is to be expected. He has made himself available for the most part after he returned slightly ahead of schedule.
“For the most part, his performances don’t indicate that there is any hangover from that setback.”
Last week, Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers confirmed that Fofana had been training with the under 23s team as speculation continued to swirl surrounding his future at the club.
“In terms of Wesley, just a young player who is not quite in the right frame of mind at the moment to play,” Rodgers said.
“He’s a good kid, he’s been great for us whilst he’s been here and at this moment it’s a difficult one for him. You can’t afford that, certainly playing a Premier League game if you’re not 100 per cent fully focused.”
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