BORUSSIA DORTMUND could demand a Premier League record fee of £130million for Jude Bellingham.
Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool are battling Real Madrid for the England midfielder, 19.
And Dortmund’s valuation has rocked Bellingham’s admirers as it was thought Prem clubs were considering bidding at around £87m.
The playmaker is under contract until 2025 and the German giants hope to fend off any transfer war until at least the summer.
And if Dortmund do get near the asking price reported by Bild, it still should be better value than the Prem’s three previous £100m-plus deals.
Philippe Coutinho never reproduced his Liverpool form after Barcelona paid £121.5m for the Brazilian in January 2018.
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That’s the current record fee involving an English top-flight club.
England wideman Jack Grealish is not the key man for Manchester City that he was at Aston Villa, despite costing £105.75m in January 2021.
And as with Coutinho, the Prem also got the best out of another entertainer before he switched to Spain for the third-highest sum.
Eden Hazard has been beset by poor displays and fitness issues since leaving Chelsea for Real Madrid at a cost of £103.50m in June 2019.
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It’s Graham Potter’s Blues who appear to have made the clearest move yet from a Prem club for Bellingham.
Chelsea reportedly told Dortmund they would go close to £90m, rather than target his Three Lions’ team-mate Declan Rice at West Ham.
Stamford Bridge owner Todd Boehly is also said to be keen on RB Leipzig midfielders Christopher Nkunku and Josko Gvardiol.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
