Paris Saint-Germain and Belgium defender Thomas Meunier revealed Chelsea tried to sign him on Deadline Day, but he was denied a move as a result of the club’s lack of depth at fullback, reports Sky Sports.
After Tottenham Hotspur signed Serge Aurier from PSG in the summer, the sale of Meunier would leave them with 34-year-old Dani Alves at right-back ahead of the new season. The Ligue 1 giants told Chelsea that the Belgian international wasn’t for sale, and after having a failed bid for Bayern’s Rafinha, the Blues went on to sign Davide Zappacosta from Torino.
“The last day of the transfer period Chelsea made an offer to Paris Saint-Germain, but I know the answer was no,” Meunier said. “The club didn’t want to sell me because we have two right-backs with Dani Alves and myself, it was difficult to sell one of us.
“I didn’t really think about (joining Chelsea) because (PSG) called me in to tell me, ‘You will not move, so don’t think about Chelsea or any other club. You will stay in Paris and we are counting on you for the season’.”
Meunier, who joined for £5m from Club Brugge in 2016, has made seven Ligue 1 appearances this season, scoring and creating five goals. The 26-year-old started the campaign second fiddle to Alves in the defence, but he’s since played in seven of their last nine in the top-flight.
The Belgian international has featured at all in the Champions League, however, having been an unused substitute in all four of their group games so far. The likes of Marquinhos and Alec Georgen can provide some cover at right-back, but it appears Meunier and Alves will share the responsibility in all competitions this season.
Meunier has made 20 appearances for the Belgian national team, scoring five goals, and could find his name linked with a host of big clubs if he continues impressing in the league.
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