Bournemouth knock back £64m Chelsea bid for Alex Scott despite contract standoff

Bournemouth have turned down a £64million bid from Chelsea for midfielder Alex Scott, despite the 22-year-old rejecting a new contract offer from the club. The Cherries have made clear to Chelsea, and to other interested parties, that Scott is not for sale this summer regardless of the uncertainty over his long-term future.

Scott still has two years remaining on the deal he signed after his £25million move from Bristol City in 2023, and Bournemouth insist that will not change their stance. The south-coast club have told Chelsea that any repeat approach would not be welcomed, and have delivered the same message directly to the player himself.

Premier League rivals circling

Chelsea are far from alone in their admiration for Scott. Arsenal, Manchester United, Tottenham and Manchester City have all shown interest in the midfielder during this window, with Arsenal previously having an approach knocked back by Bournemouth in June.

Scott’s stalling over fresh terms — an offer that has reportedly been on the table for at least two months — has only heightened speculation, but Bournemouth are adamant they hold the upper hand. The club are under no financial pressure to sell, having secured Europa League qualification and banked substantial fees last summer from the sales of Dean Huijsen, Milos Kerkez, Illia Zabarnyi and Dango Ouattara.

Kroupi and Rayan also targeted

Bournemouth are taking a similarly firm line with forward Junior Kroupi, who has attracted interest from Arsenal and Tottenham, while Brazil international Rayan is not expected to leave having only arrived in January. Both Scott and Kroupi are currently with the squad for new head coach Marco Rose’s pre-season training camp in Austria, with Rayan due to join later after his World Cup exploits with Brazil.

Scott has yet to win a senior England cap but was named in Thomas Tuchel’s squad for the first time last November and was subsequently included in the manager’s extended pre-World Cup training camp in Florida. He has also represented England at Under-21 level.

A busy summer for midfield fees

The interest in Scott comes amid a frenetic Premier League market for midfielders this summer. Chelsea have already completed a £117million deal for Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers, while Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson is poised to join Manchester City for £116million.

Tottenham, meanwhile, have spent big of their own, paying £100million for Newcastle’s Sandro Tonali and £85million for West Ham’s Mateus Fernandes. Against that backdrop, Bournemouth’s willingness to rebuff a £64million offer underlines just how highly they rate Scott, who was named the Championship’s young player of the season in 2022-23 during his time with Bristol City.

Read more: Chelsea hijack Arsenal’s £117m Morgan Rogers deal as Gunners turn to Tzolis

Sources

• BBC Sport
• FourFourTwo

This is an independent report written from the facts across the sources named above.