Saudi team ruins €40m Chelsea transfer – but Ben Jacobs reports major twist | OneFootball

Chelsea have been making great progress this week in terms of transfers and loans.

Players have come in, players have gone out, development loans have been sorted. It’s all progressing well. Ben Jacobs’ Tweet sums up the action of the coming days pretty well.

There is an interesting snippet in there on a player who looked close to a move last week but has yet to secure a transfer. Renato Veiga was being strongly linked to Atletico Madrid, and we were convinced that it was a matter of time before he made a €40m move.

Saudi turn of affairs breaks down Veiga move

Ben Jacobs on Saudi Arabian interest in Renato Veiga.

However, events in Saudi Arabia changed all that. Feyenoord’s David Hancko was about to go to Al Nassr, but at the last move that deal collapsed. That meant Hancko was back on the market, and Atletico dropped their interest in Veiga to swoop for the Slovakian. Within days that deal was done, and Chelsea were sent back to the drawing board.

It’s frustrating as that was a good fee we were going to get, and it could have greased the wheels of further incoming signings. The good news is that Jacobs says there is more interest in the Portugal international.

“Renato Veiga has new Saudi interest after Atletico Madrid move fell through,” Jacobs put in his Tweet.

Veiga could yet end up making major move

Could a Saudi club save us in the Veiga affair after another one screwed us? It’s perfectly possible. They certainly have the money.

But there is a little doubt about whether Veiga would take such a move. He’s still yet to make his proper European breakout, and given how keen he was to leave Chelsea in January to get minutes ahead of the World Cup, we’re not sure he would risk a Saudi move.

Then again, with their star player Cristiano Ronaldo playing in Saudi, Portugal manager Roberto Martinez can hardly hold it against any player who does decide to go and play there.