Stoke reject Chelsea bid for goalkeeper
Stoke City have rejected an initial bid from Chelsea for goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.
The Premier League champions are trying to sign Begovic as cover for Petr Cech but have so far not been able to get Stoke to budge on their valuation. It's clear that Begovic wants to leave the club after his refusal to play for Stoke last week in the Carling Cup.
Chelsea must now decide whether it is worth trying to bring Begovic in quickly or whether they will have to try and arrange a deal with Stoke that will see the goalkeeper move in January as the summer transfer window is about to close.
Begovic is a top quality goalkeeper that possesses a lot of skill so Stoke cannot be blamed for wanting a top price for him. However, they risk alienating both the player and Chelsea with their stubbornness over the deal.
Quality and skill
Begovic is a goalkeeper that prides himself on being very fit all of the time he is contracted to and playing for a club. This is evident due to his physical appearance and something that has led to him breaking into the Bosnian international team.
He is very quick and agile across his goal. He has the ability to swoop down to a corner to tip the ball around the post or to make a last second gather of the ball when it seemingly looks as though the ball will cross the line.
These are all reasons why Stoke should hold out for the price they have in mind, even if this means the two parties wait until the winter for the transfer to actually happen. Stoke will not want to be bullied over one of their best players.
Stoke chairman Peter Coates said: "I felt huge disappointment. He's an exceptional young goalkeeper, one of the best in the country. Clubs like Chelsea make enquiries about them and their heads can get turned very easily. It's just bad advice they get given, they shouldn't listen to it but obviously they do."
Risk of alienation
Stoke risk alienating the player and the club who are apparently interested in signing him. It's clear Chelsea have shown an interest in the player and the player has shown an interest in Chelsea.
It's very easy to judge from the chairman's comments that the club don't seem to be taking the interest from Chelsea very seriously. This could cause a deal in the future between the two clubs to break down.
Coates added: "You may have heard a rumour and it may be pretty good information, but the fact is we've rejected any offer they've made. They made an enquiry and they did make an offer and it was rejected. Silly offers do have an effect on you but nothing like that has happened and we're not expecting it to happen."
Betting advice
If Chelsea are not willing to meet the asking price that Stoke want then it's very unlikely that another club will try to. This means Begovic is likely to stay at Stoke until the winter at the very least. He will make them stronger in any game he plays for the club so back Stoke when he starts in goal.
A deal between the parties is apparently very close despite what the chairman has said. Take any odds on offer from a bookmaker over the possibility of this deal. The odds may be short but it seems almost certain that a deal will happen at some point. Chelsea just need to up their offer a little bit to make it happen.
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