With the summer transfer window closing on Wednesday midnight, the transfer market is in full swing. Clubs are doing everything they can to strengthen their squads. While most clubs have done decent business this summer, many clubs are still preparing last-gasp bids in an attempt to land the signing of their target players.
This summer saw Paul Pogba move from Italian champions Juventus to his former club Manchester United for a world record fee of £89m. Juventus paid a hefty sum of £76m to acquire the services of Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli, making him the third most expensive player of all time.
While Pep Guardiola and Manchester City splashed £47m for 22-year-old John Stones and became world’s second most expensive defender.
But, as usual, there were some deals which did not materialize. Some transfers didn’t happen because the offered sum was not enough while some failed because the clubs decided that no amount was big enough to sell their prized assets. There were some moves which seemed imminent but fell through at the eleventh hour and some clubs even snatched a player away from their rival club.
We take a look at five transfers of this summer which eventually fell through.
#1 Andre Gomes to Real Madrid
Andre Gomes was part of the Portugal squad that won the Euro 2016 this summer. He made 77 appearances for Valencia over two seasons, scoring 9 goals. The 23-year-old was wanted by big clubs like Barcelona, Manchester City, Inter Milan but it was Real Madrid who were ahead in the race to sign the midfielder.
Gomes was viewed by Zidane as a long-term replacement for Luka Modric. Spanish newspaper Marca even published a report on their front page about Madrid being closer to sign Gomes.
Madrid were confident of negotiating with Valencia and bringing down their original asking price but Valencia did not budge and demanded another player as part of the deal. Zidane was not ready to splash €50 million on the 23-year-old midfielder, who did not fit in his starting eleven plans and the deal ultimately did not materialise.
Real’s arch-rivals Barcelona were also monitoring the Gomes situation closely. When Zidane pulled the plug on the deal, Barcelona swooped in and announced the signing of Gomes for a fee in the region of €35m plus add-ons.
The Portuguese player became the first player represented by ‘Super Agent’ Jorge Mendes to sign for Barcelona.
#2 Jamie Vardy to Arsenal
After their fairytale finish to the Premier League table last season, Leicester City were facing an uphill battle to keep their star players Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez at the club. Vardy scored 24 goals last season and was a wanted man in the transfer market.
The forward had a release clause in his contract, allowing him to leave the club for £22m if a club playing in Champions League made an offer.
Arsenal were in search for a striker in the market and were heavily linked with Alvaro Morata. But when it seemed that the transfer was unlikely to happen, Arsene Wenger decided to turn his attention to the Leicester City forward.
The Frenchman triggered the release clause in the Englishman’s contract right at the start of the transfer window. Leicester coach Claudio Ranieri even confirmed the interest from Arsenal and revealed that the England forward is assessing his options.
“We want to keep him," Ranieri said. "Arsenal have said that they are willing to pay the clause but he hasn't accepted yet. It's up to the player to say yes or no."
But eventually, Vardy decided to snub Arsenal and agreed on a four-year contract extension with Foxes increasing his weekly wages to £100,000. It is speculated that Vardy had concerns about the playing style of Gunners and decided to reject Arsene Wenger’s offer
#3 Alexandre Lacazette to Arsenal
Alexandre Lacazette was the star of Ligue 1 in the 2014-15 season. The Lyon striker scored 27 goals in 33 games that season and finished as the top scorer of the league. Despite struggling with a back injury at the start of the season, he continued his superb form next year, scoring 21 goals.
The French striker was on the radar of clubs like Arsenal, Liverpool, and Paris Saint-Germain.
When Arsenal’s pursuit of Alvaro Morata and Jamie Vardy failed, the Gunners then went for Lacazette. The 25-year-old striker was an ideal replacement for inconsistent Oliver Giroud.
It was reported that Lacazette was unhappy due to the club president’s behavior during his contract negotiations last summer and wanted a move away from the club.
Arsenal submitted a €35m bid in an attempt to bring the France International to North London. However, the Ligue 1 club was determined to keep their star striker. Lyon rejected Arsenal’s bid and released a statement revealing the details of the offer.
‘The reality is that Arsenal made an offer of €35m to Olympique Lyonnais which we did not respond to for one reason only,’ the statement read. ‘Lyon will keep Alexandre Lacazette who is irreplaceable and is a key man in Bruno Genesio’s squad.’
Arsene Wenger was clearly unhappy with Lyon after the club decided to go public on Lacazette’s transfer. When asked about the club statement, The Frenchman hinted his frustration at the way proceedings were handled.
‘Lyon is responsible for their own statements,’ the 66-year-old said. ‘On the transfer front, I think the best option is always to keep as secret as possible.”
The Gunner pursuit of signing a forward this summer finally ended when they signed Luas Perez from La Liga outfit Deportivo.
#4 Alessio Romagnoli to Chelsea
Kurt Zouma’s long term injury last season meant that the new Blue’s boss Antonio Conte had to make the signing of a center back a high priority task. Conte has only four senior defenders in the squad - John Terry, Gary Cahill, César Azpilicueta and Branislav Ivanovic.
The newly appointed coach then decided to target AC Milan defender Alessio Romagnoli in an attempt to strengthen Chelsea’s defense.
Romagnoli is highly rated in Italy due to his maturity and composure at such an early stage of his career. The 21-year-old defender is an excellent reader of the game and at 6ft 2 in he can be physically imposing.
The Italian was a mainstay in Milan’s defence last season and considered as one of the brightest prospects in Italian Football
Having watched his progress while working as a coach for the Italian national team, Conte decided to lure the young center back to Stanford Bridge by submitting a reported bid of £34m.
However, the Milan-based club fended off Chelsea’s interest and rejected the bid for their young center back. The club released a statement on its website which ended the speculation about Romagnoli transfer to the Premier League Club
“AC Milan has received a significant offer for its player Alessio Romagnoli from Chelsea FC,” the statement read. "The player is not for sale, therefore this negotiation will not continue”
After missing out on Romagnoli, Conte has now set his sights on Fiorentina defender Marcos Alonso. According to Telegraph Alonso is very close to joining Chelsea for a £21m fee.
#5 Lucas Leiva to Galatasaray
Lucas Leiva was strongly linked with a move to Galatasaray throughout this summer. The Brazilian is Liverpool’s longest serving player from the current squad, having joined the Merseyside club nine years ago.
But with new signings Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Emre Can all ahead of him in the pecking order, the move to Istanbul outfit certainly made sense for the 29-year-old.
Galatasaray wanted the midfielder and could offer him something that Liverpool would not be able to - a guaranteed starting place.
Galatasaray board member Levent Nazifolueven publicly admitted the club’s interest in signing the Brazilian, stating that player had asked for 24 hours to decide on the move. The transfer seemed almost imminent.
However, Reds coach Jurgen Klopp stepped in and blocked the move. Apparently, the German coach is not ready to sell the player and wants him to stay at the club. The 29-year-old has just one year remaining on his current contract and has yet to make an appearance this season.
He was an unused substitute in Liverpool’s 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday. He wasn’t even included in the squad for the first two games of the season.
With the transfer window closing this Wednesday, Lucas’s future at Anfield remains uncertain.
