Nico Williams: Chelsea joins the battle with Arsenal and Manchester United

Nico Williams remains one of the players who could make an impact on the next transfer window. The Athletic Bilbao winger is now reportedly being targeted by Chelsea, who could make their move as early as January.

Chelsea want to revive the deal

According to Fichajes, Chelsea would be ready to invest €80 million to convince Athletic Bilbao to let Nico Williams leave. Such an approach would place the London club among the Spanish player's main suitors. However, this is far from a new development.

Barcelona had already pushed to sign Williams during the summer of 2025, but failed to reach an agreement. More recently, Arsenal were regularly mentioned among his suitors, but no transfer was ultimately completed during the last summer window. Manchester United would now also be interested in the profile of the 24-year-old winger.

Athletic Bilbao hold the cards

The main difficulty for the interested clubs lies in Nico Williams's contractual situation. The Spain international is under contract with Athletic Bilbao until 2035, while his release clause is reportedly set at €90 million. According to the reports, the Basque club would not be willing to negotiate the price of its player easily. Chelsea may therefore have to increase its offer to reach the amount of the clause.

Williams's statistics partly explain this interest. Since making his professional debut with Athletic, he has recorded 38 goals and 37 assists in 204 official matches. This season, he has scored one goal in five appearances in La Liga. With Spain, the player also has 36 caps and six goals and already boasts a significant international honours list.

Aliou Toundé |

Editorfr

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