Man City respond to Chelsea deadline: Enzo Fernandez deal not dead?

Updated: 14 Aug 2026 17:43 BST | 4 min read

Enzo Maresca, Enzo Fernandez, Man City — © IMAGO

Tom Weber | Writer

Multilingual sports writer who specialises in European football and American soccer.

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Manchester City did not make a bid for Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez before the latter's Friday deadline, but they could yet make a move for him this summer.

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The Argentina international is keen to leave Chelsea before the window closes, which has prompted strong interest from new Man City boss Enzo Maresca. The two previously worked together at Stamford Bridge and shared a strong relationship.

FootballTransfers reported earlier this week that personal terms would not be an issue, with Fernandez open to trading West London for Manchester. The biggest hurdle would be agreeing a fee with Chelsea.

Current ETV

Enzo Fernández

M, DM (C)

Chelsea

Enzo Fernández

M, DM (C)

Chelsea

ETV Range

€83.3M - €101.8M

Shortly after we published our information, widespread reports revealed that Chelsea had set a 5 pm deadline for Friday, 14 August, by which City had to make a net €140 million offer for the 25-year-old.

Chelsea want to finalise their squad planning, and given how important Fernandez is to them, they will not allow this saga to drag on until the final hours of the transfer window. Man City were told exactly what they had to do to get a deal done.

City refuse to play Chelsea's games

The deadline came and went, and no offer materialised. This wasn't in any way surprising as it had already been confirmed by Enzo Maresca beforehand. On Friday morning, the City boss said: "Not today, to be honest. I don't think we're going to do something today."

What now for Fernandez? Well, there are two different points of view. Chelsea consider the matter closed. They insist that the midfielder is going nowhere this summer, and they remain open to handing him a contract extension.

However, City are reportedly taking a different position. According to Sky Sports reporter Alan Irwin, the Etihad club seemingly feel that there is still a deal to be done. Considering the size of the fee required to sign Fernandez, they will argue that they need more time and must offload Rodri to Barcelona and Tijjani Reijnders to Al-Qadsiah first.

"This was a deadline Chelsea imposed themselves, and Man City were unlikely to play ball with a club imposing their own transfer deadlines," Irwin explained.

"No offer has been forthcoming for Enzo Fernandez today. The fact Chelsea want £120m [€140m] for his services may well make City depend on other factors - such as whether Rodri leaves the football club.

"City boss Enzo Maresca is a big admirer of Enzo Fernandez. He understands exactly what he could bring to the club. But if the transfer is to come off, [it] is very much dependent on if Rodri leaves Man City for Barcelona."

Man City are still bound by financial regulations, even if their spending over the past 18 months wouldn't suggest so. They have already shelled out €177.2m on new signings this summer, most notably €135m on Elliot Anderson.

With the club believed to be closing in on a deal for Lille sensation Ayyoub Bouaddi, which could also reach or perhaps even exceed the €100m mark, they can't go around spending €140m on Fernandez without requisite sales to offset this massive investment.

Understandably, then, they are currently not in a position to actually make a move for Fernandez. Chelsea, on the other hand, will argue that City have known about the financial framework required for a deal since May - they could have moved for Fernandez instead of Anderson.

Ben Jacobs has confirmed that City may well try to make a bid for Fernandez yet this summer, but the firm expectation now is that the 2022 World Cup winner will be forced to remain at Chelsea.