Peter Rutzler, of The Athletic, recently claimed Fulham missed out on the signing of Ben Brereton Diaz as they were priced out of a move by his club.
Deadline day was a busy day for the Cottagers as they picked up Carlos Vinicius, Willian, and Daniel James to bolster their attacking options in order to help their chances of surviving the Premier League season.
However, one key player they were after and failed to get a deal done for was Brereton Diaz, who has shonee in the Championship for Blackburn Rovers over the last couple of seasons and is in the last year of his contract.
Rutzler told the Fulhamish podcast that Blackburn were looking for £15m or £20m for the striker which forced Fulham out of a move and the two teams could not come to an agreement before the deadline.
“Blackburn’s asking price was far too high. I think that was a long and the short of it. I think they wanted between £15m-£20m that’s sort of the numbers being bandied around I think it may have been higher than that,” he said.
“Which for a player in the final year of his contract, it’s never going to be met. And I think for them realistically and maybe the last time they could get such fees. And I think to me anyway, Brereton Diaz would have been a great signing ticked a couple of boxes. Winger and striker can play both positions, goal scorer, still young, international”.
“Depending on how things go in January, or next summer, one to sort of keep an eye on and see where he goes next.”
TIF Thoughts on Brereton Diaz to Fulham…
Fulham have started incredibly well this season so far, currently sitting 10th in the table after six games with two wins, two draws, and two losses with nine goals to their name while also conceding nine goals.
Their star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic has been on impressive form so far with six goals in six games, but the addition of Brereton Diaz would have helped take the team to a new level this season.
So far this season the Chilean international has picked up four goals and one assist in their opening eight games from the left-wing position. Last season, however, he played primarily in the striker role and bagged 22 goals in the second tier of English football.
With just a year left on his contract, it is absurd that Blackburn are asking for a fee of around £20m, while he is a great player it is hard to see him resigning from the team so therefore teams know they can approach him on a free deal in January. However, Fulham will regret not paying the fee if he opts to sign for another team, he is truly talented.
Should Fulham have signed Brereton Diaz?
Yes
No
