AFC Bournemouth have reportedly been chasing Colombia international Jefferson Lerma since June.
The 23-year-old was reportedly dropped from Spanish side Levante’s final few games of the 2017/18 campaign due to various offers from other clubs in Spain and from Germany, despite only signing a new contract until 2022 in May.
He then travelled to Russia to be part of Colombia’s World Cup squad, where he faced England in the second round of the competition.
Since Colombia’s elimination Lerma has been heavily linked with a move to AFC Bournemouth, with a lot of the news originating from the tabloid newspaper The Sun.
Prior to the World Cup, it was their exclusive report that had claimed that the Cherries had made a £18million bid for Lerma, who can play central midfield, as a defensive-minded player, or at right back.
They later claimed that AFC Bournemouth was willing to offer £32million.
Reports in Spain, however, appear to suggest that a bid of around €25million, is the latest offer on the table, albeit having already been rejected by Levente.
NOTICIA @SERDepValencia. El centrocampista @jeffersonlerma se queda en el @LevanteUD, que ha desestimado un 'ofertón' del @afcbournemouth. https://t.co/qv77ryBbnm
— SER Deportivos Valen (@SERDepValencia) July 26, 2018
So The Sun has once again ramped up the intrigue by now claiming that Lerma has now handed in a formal transfer request to try and force a move to the Premier League.
The report claimed…
Sources close to the deal have told SunSport the player is disappointed he is being denied the opportunity to fulfil his ambition of playing in the Premier League.
Your say…
kirsikka wrote…
If true, that could change the economics of any deal significantly. I believe I’m right in saying that if a player hands in a transfer request they forfeit their right to the cut of the deal. In which case suddenly our bid is worth more without us making a larger offer. It used to be rumoured to be 10% but heck knows in the modern game. – Join the conversation, click here.
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