According to reports from The Express this afternoon, prodigious left-back Luis Jose Gaya has signed a new contract at Valencia, almost tripling his release clause to a whopping £36million.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United were all reportedly considering summer bids for the Spain U21 after a sensational season as Los Che’s first-choice left-back, which has seen him claim one goal and five assists in 32 La Liga appearances whilst averaging 2.8 tackles and 2 interceptions per match.
As This Is Futbol revealed last week, the 19 year-old’s previous contract included a release clause of just £13million – which the Premier League duo were all keen to activate this summer, along with European champions Real Madrid.
But Gaya has now penned new terms at Mestalla Stadium, bumping up his buy-out fee to almost triple the original sum. His new contract, signed today, will extend his stay at Valencia for another five years.
Speaking at the press conference, the young defender informed reporters; “I am very happy and proud to extend my deal with Valencia. It’s what I wanted from the beginning and in the end things have turned out as both parties wanted.
“We’ve both emerged as winners from this and it is another dream come true. It was very exciting to debut in the Primera Division with Valencia, and now I have signed on for five more years,” he added.