Enzo Fernandez has been left out of Chelsea's squad to face Luton Town in the Carabao Cup second round. The Argentine midfielder's absence is the strongest indication yet that he could leave the club before the transfer deadline.
Manchester City expected to bid
Chelsea's Premier League rivals Manchester City are widely expected to bid for the midfielder before Tuesday's transfer deadline. Their interest in Fernandez is longstanding and has been led by Enzo Maresca, the City head coach who worked with Fernandez and made him a key player during his 18 months in charge at Chelsea.
Fernandez was expected to be named in the squad for Thursday's Carabao Cup tie, according to Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso. However, Argentinean media have reported that Fernandez asked not to be involved.
Alonso's pre-match comments
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Alonso had said: "Yes, so we expect that he is involved. He has trained, he's training really well, he's a good professional and he will be involved."
Asked whether he would like to keep Fernandez, Alonso had said: "We want to have the best team possible. We know his qualities. He has shown it and we have to wait, but we will think about tomorrow and let's see how things develop."
Fan reaction and transfer stance
Fernandez was booed by some Chelsea fans but cheered by others as he appeared as a substitute in their 3-2 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage on Monday. He has made no secret of his desire to leave Chelsea but continues to train as normal with the club.
Chelsea set a deadline of 5pm BST on Friday, August 13 for bids to be made for Fernandez by interested parties and made it clear they valued the player at £120 million. No offers were made in that time, and Chelsea have since insisted any interested buyers would have to pay even more for Fernandez, given that the Blues would look for a replacement and could face an inflated price when doing so at this late stage of the window.
