Chelsea officially MISS OUT on long-time target - Romano

Updated: 17 Aug 2023 22:27 BST
3 min read

Fabrizio Romano issues Chelsea transfer update — © ProShots

Chelsea are set to officially miss out on long-time target Arsen Zakharyan, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Blues began targeting the Russian wonderkid last year after switching their rejigging their transfer strategy and gearing it towards unearthing some of the most promising young talent in the world.

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Chelsea had already agreed a deal with Dynamo Moscow for the 20-year-old, but FIFA blocked the move due to restrictions on doing business with Russian clubs in light of the country's invasion of Ukraine.

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The player, who has recorded 19 goals and 25 assists for Dynamo's senior side, was desperate to join the Blues, saying: "I want to go to Chelsea now...I have a year and a half of my contract left. I am happy to play for Dynamo but the only place I want to go is Chelsea."

Chelsea miss out despite loophole

Earlier in this transfer window, the Blues were once again in for Zakharyan, albeit not officially. Instead, they reportedly sought to exploit a loophole created by their acquisition of Strasbourg.

The French club would sign him initially, allowing Chelsea to easily get him further down the line. Nothing ultimately came of it, however. Now, the 20-year-old is on his way to Spain.

Linked also with Lazio, Zakharyan will instead be heading to another Champions League club: Real Sociedad. After lengthy negotiations, the Spanish side finally appears to have achieved a breakthrough.

Fabrizio Romano reports that the Russian youngster will travel to Spain tomorrow (Friday) to have his medical and complete his move.

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Real Sociedad have also been linked with the likes of Arsenal's Kieran Tierney and Man Utd's Donny van de Beek as they seek to strengthen their side ahead of their Champions League adventure.

It will be interesting to see the reaction to this move. The Basque side are one of Spain's best-supported teams - despite hailing from the country's smallest province - and there will surely be some that will take exception to their doing business with a Russian club.