"They were trying to get out" - LaLiga club's director claims Atletico Madrid tried to cancel Conor Gallagher deal with Chelsea
Valencia sporting director Miguel Angel Corona has claimed that Atletico Madrid were trying to pull out of their deal with Chelsea for the signing of Conor Gallagher. Atletico are set to sign the English midfielder this summer, with striker Samu Omorodion moving in the opposite direction.
According to Miguel Angel Corona, Atletico had agreed a deal with Valencia to sign 21-year-old Spanish midfielder Javi Guerra. The Spaniard was reportedly the club's back-up plan to Gallagher. He added that Diego Simeone's side tried to pull out of the Gallagher deal with Chelsea.
“Atletico and we agreed on that agreement on Sunday, on Monday in the face of certain journalistic information, we asked and they themselves told us to be calm that they were trying to get out of that operation, that their objective was only Javi Guerra. Then, on Wednesday, the largest shareholder apologises, show us understanding and tell us that he also wanted to get out of the deal, they apologise to us because they know what their actions have been,” Miguel Angel Corona told Relevo (via Football Espana).
According to reports, Javi Guerra was set to move to the Metropolitano for an initial fee of €20 million, rising up to €25 million with add-ons. Valencia reportedly had a sell-on clause in the deal as well.
Where does this leave Chelsea and Conor Gallagher?
Chelsea's Conor Gallagher was initially on the verge of rejecting the move to Spain as he wanted to stay at Stamford Bridge, which prompted Atletico to look for alternate options like Guerra.
After rejecting multiple short-term contract offers from Chelsea as he wanted a long-term deal, Gallagher eventually gave the green-light to the €42 million move to Los Rojiblancos.
According to the Mirror, the 24-year-old Englishman was banished from Chelsea's training ground last week after holding talks with his boyhood club's hierarchy about the potential move to Spain.
Gallagher joined the Blues as an eight-year-old in 2008, but had to wait till 2022 to make his Chelsea debut, having been sent on loan from 2019 till 2022. Since then, he has been an integral part of the team, even captaining the club in 2023 after long-term injuries to Reece James and Ben Chilwell.