Chelsea submit €45m bid for Monaco midfielder Lamine Camara

Chelsea have submitted an official €45 million bid to sign Senegal international Lamine Camara from AS Monaco.

However, the offer is understood to fall short of Monaco’s valuation of the 22-year-old, meaning further negotiations could be required before a deal can be reached.

The move could go down to the final hours of the transfer window, with Chelsea seemingly reigniting their interest in Camara after their pursuit of the midfielder appeared to have cooled earlier this week.

The Blues had grown frustrated by the lack of progress in negotiations with Monaco and had subsequently turned their attention towards France international Manu Koné.

Chelsea’s focus, however, now appears to have shifted back to Camara, with the west London club making their interest concrete by formally placing a €45m proposal on the table.

Monaco are reluctant to lose the midfielder and are understood to value him higher than the figure offered by Chelsea. The Principality club would prefer to retain Camara, particularly after his impressive start to the new campaign.

The Senegal international has quickly established himself as an important figure in the Monaco midfield and has also earned the confidence of new head coach Filipe Luís.

Camara’s performances have made him one of the standout players in Monaco’s squad, while his ability to operate with energy, technical quality and defensive discipline has attracted significant interest from Premier League clubs.

Despite Monaco’s desire to keep him, Camara is not completely opposed to the possibility of joining Chelsea. The player is reportedly open to a move to Stamford Bridge, although he is equally comfortable with remaining in the Principality if the clubs fail to reach an agreement.

Chelsea must therefore convince Monaco to lower their demands or improve their proposal if they are to complete the transfer.

With the deadline approaching, negotiations are expected to intensify, making Camara’s future one of the deals to watch closely as the transfer window moves towards its conclusion.