Manchester United were contacted at the start of this month by Atletico Madrid over a deal for Joao Felix, reported The Times.
However, the club declined to pay the staggering loan fee Atletico wanted, plus his wages.
Chelsea were the ones to make a move instead, and threw him straight into their line-up against Fulham tonight.
It was a debut for Felix to remember alright, for the wrong reasons.
Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty ImagesJoao Felix sent off
Felix was looking good, to be fair, even though Chelsea struggled against Fulham, trailing 1-0 at half-time. He was bright, attempting six shots at goal.
Then with the score 1-1 after Kalidou Koulibaly scored an equaliser, Felix had a moment to forget, resulting in an instant red card.
Felix’s high tackle earned a straight red card, with Chelsea reduced to 10 men.
The Portugal international now faces a three-game suspension, missing games against Crystal Palace, Liverpool, and then Fulham again.
It would have been better from a United perspective if he were available for the Liverpool game, so we won’t be too smug about his red card.
However, it makes Chelsea’s loan deal even more expensive. The Athletic reported Chelsea paid a £9.7 million loan fee plus his wages, for the final 19 Premier League games of the season.
This is now reduced, after tonight’s game, to the final 15 matches once Felix has served his suspension.
So from paying £500,000 per Premier League game, Chelsea are now effectively paying a fee of £600,000 per game.
The Portugal international is an excellent player, he was one of the best on the pitch before his red card – but at a real cost, it is easy to see why Manchester United did not go in for this particular deal.
