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Booed at Craven Cottage
Fulham fans at Craven Cottage booed Enzo Fernandez as his name was announced among the Chelsea substitutes ahead of kick-off on Monday, and chants of ‘w****r’ rose from the home support as he walked across the pitch towards the dugout.
“Venomous boos greeted the announcement of his name among the Chelsea substitutes”
The match came after England’s wounds from losing against Argentina in a bad-tempered World Cup semi-final this summer were described as still raw, and the New York Times noted that next to Fernandez was countryman Valentin Barco, “famously slapped by Jude Bellingham in retaliation” in Atlanta.
Chelsea supporters at Craven Cottage responded by applauding Fernandez and singing his name, and the New York Times said he was shown similar warmth by the majority of the away end at full time before giving his match shirt to a supporter as he left the field.
Speaking after Chelsea’s 3-2 win over Fulham on Monday, manager Xabi Alonso told the BBC’s Match of the Day, “In football, I am not surprised by anything,” when asked about Fernandez’s future.
The New York Times framed the immediate context as a transfer-saga moment, with it saying “Transfer-saga fatigue is spreading” and adding that no one expected the goodwill to last if Fernandez joins Enzo Maresca at City.
Deadline pressure and bids
Manchester City are poised to make a late move for Enzo Fernandez in what the Sky Sports Paper Talk roundup called “the biggest Premier League transfer of the summer,” with the report also listing other transfer headlines from Wednesday’s newspapers.
The Telegraph said Chelsea want at least £120m for Fernández and that sources expect City to test the resolve at Stamford Bridge with an approach in a frantic final week of the window.
In the same Sky Sports roundup, Aston Villa indicated a willingness to offer Chelsea a £65m package for striker Nicolas Jackson, while the list also included Newcastle launching a £35m bid for Lille winger Matias Fernandez-Pardo.
Football365 reported that Fabrizio Romano insisted personal terms are “not a problem” as Man City look to sign Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez with a bid on the way, and Romano said on his YouTube channel that there is “green light from Enzo to proceed.”
The New York Times added that Alonso betrayed weariness at the lack of closure, saying, “We will see. My wish is that we know what will happen for the future but we will see this week,” as the week’s outcome remained unresolved.
What Chelsea and City face
The New York Times described the stakes for Chelsea as both sporting and structural, arguing that if Fernandez stays and is rewarded with a pay rise, “who is to say this won’t happen again in a year or two?” and questioning confidence that he will be a “good soldier for Alonso this season.”
““who is to say this won’t happen again in a year or two?””
It also said Fernandez was bought from Benfica for €120million (£106m) in January 2023 and that he scored 10 goals from midfield in the Premier League for the first time and netted 15 times across all competitions.
The Telegraph tied the potential departure to City’s rebuild, noting that Fernandez would come with a pre-existing relationship with City’s head coach, Enzo Maresca, under whom he played at Chelsea.
Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror said Fernandez is ready to make a £120m last-minute move to Manchester City and that Chelsea are braced for City to make a bid for the Argentina midfielder in what would be their biggest deal of the summer.
Across the reports, the immediate consequence is that Chelsea’s midfield planning is contingent on whether City’s approach lands, with Alonso publicly saying “We will see” as the window’s end approaches and with Romano insisting the “agreement with Enzo is not a problem on personal terms.”