REVEALED: Why wonderkid REJECTED Chelsea in favour of La Liga move

James Shearman

Updated: 14 Sept 2023 22:15 BST
3 min read

Wonderkid Arsen Zakharyan has revealed the reason he decided to sign for Real Sociedad over Chelsea.

Zakharyan was one of Chelsea's top targets in 2023 but they failed to complete a deal for the Russia international.

Article continues under the video

Instead, he left Dynamo Moscow for Real Sociedad in a deal worth more than £11 million.

And the young attacking midfielder does not appear to regret his decision to turn down a move to west London.

"For me, it was more interesting to come to Real Sociedad than to Chelsea." he said, via Fabrizio Romano.

"It was also a more realistic option. I realised that I was already a Real player when I signed, I was worried about some issues during the negotiation but now… here I am."

Elye Wahi rejected Chelsea

Elye Wahi is another player that rejected Chelsea this summer, deciding to leave Montpellier for fellow Ligue 1 side Lens.

Wahi, who has been nominated for the Kopa Prize in the Ballon d’Or awards, would have provided competition for Nicolas Jackson at Stamford Bridge.

After bagging 19 league goals last season, he was on several clubs' radar, but he eventually made a €30m move to Champions League-bound Lens.

Arsen Zakharyan: “For me, it was more interesting to come to Real Sociedad than to Chelsea”. ⚪️🔵

“It was also a more realistic option. I realised that I was already a Real player when I signed, I was worried about some issues during the negotiation but now… here I’m”. pic.twitter.com/0vHaZfLq8A
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 14, 2023

In a recent interview, he admitted that Chelsea were interested but says that he was actually closer to moving to Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt instead.

“Chelsea? I didn’t want to go there,” he told L’Equipe. “Frankfurt were close – closer than Chelsea.

“I spoke with the coach there. He speaks French, which was important for me. But we had to wait for the departure of Randal Kolo Muani and waiting for his move was too complicated. I have no regrets.

“My first objective was to stay in France, so I think I made the right choice. At the very beginning, there were no French clubs, only a few contacts from Monaco. Over time, Lens came and we managed to get along.”