Nottingham Forest are considering making a £15 million bid to sign Chelsea starlet Ian Maatsen. However, the Blues will hold out for £20 million for one of their burgeoning, young talents.
According to the Daily Mail, the Reds fancy the left-back and want to sign him this summer. West Ham and Burnely are also keen, with clubs in other European leagues also fancying him.
There is, however, another slight problem. Another report, this time from The Evening Standard has suggested that Maatsen would welcome the chance to stay at Chelsea this summer.
The youngster went out on loan to Burnley last season. He was part of one of the greatest teams that the Championship has ever seen as the Clarets romped to promotion with over 100 points.
The Holland under-21 international made 42 appearances across the campaign. He impressed Burnley boss Vincent Kompany and it’s absolutely no surprise that he wants him back at Turf Moor.
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Maatsen has also spent time on loan with Charlton and Coventry. Now, however, he’s set for big things and even scored twice in a friendly against Wrexham in the USA in the early hours of this morning.
Mauricio Pochettino has given lots of players a clean slate this season. It is, however, difficult to see where Forest-linked Maatsen will get much playing time, with Ben Chilwell and Marc Cucurella at the club.
Forest considering move for Maatsen
This one might be a tricky deal to complete. For starters, Forest will have to up the ante and pay Chelsea the £20 million that they feel Maatsen is worth.
Then there is the task of convincing the player that a move to the City Ground is the best thing for his career. With Steve Cooper at Forest, however, tempting Maatsen might not be a problem.
Forest definitely need a left-back. Renan Lodi has now gone to Marseille and that leaves the club with Harry Toffolo and Omar Richards, who hasn’t played for over a year.
Signing Maatsen would be a brilliant signing for Forest. At 21-years-old he has bags of potential and he looks to have all the attributes to star in the Premier League.