The Telegraph have revealed that Ange Postecoglou was keen on bringing Conor Gallagher to Tottenham but Chelsea quoted a much higher price to their London rivals for the midfielder than they did to Atletico Madrid.
Tottenham wanted Conor Gallagher on a free
It was revealed by HITC two weeks ago that Gallagher was never really overly intent on swapping his boyhood club for Spurs, only having his eyes on Atletico Madrid.
Meanwhile, Fabrizio Romano said on The Daily Briefing last week that Tottenham never really showed a serious intention to make an offer for the 24-year-old this summer and only explored the possibility of signing the player on a free transfer next summer.
Unfortunately for Gallagher, his future remains unclear just days before the start of the new Premier League season, with Chelsea and Atletico Madrid talks hitting a roadblock (BBC).
Chelsea’s stance on Conor Gallagher
It has now been revealed by The Telegraph that Postecoglou ideally wanted to team Solanke and Gallagher together at Tottenham next season.
However, it is explained that the Blues never quoted Spurs a fee below £45m for the England international even though he had just a year left on his contract.
That is in contrast to the £33.7m they accepted from Atletico for their academy graduate.
Spurs Web Opinion
Chelsea had no reason to strengthen a direct rival and were always going to make the deal difficult for us.
They would also have been aware of the potential backlash had they sold a fan favourite and an academy graduate to their biggest rivals.