Leandro Paredes on verge of joining French giants PSG

Argentine midfielder Leandro Paredes is said to have snubbed Chelsea in order to join current Ligue 1 holders Paris-Saint Germain. Parades is expected in Paris tomorrow to finalise the move.

The total fee is believed to be around €40 million which would make him the second most expensive export from the Russian first division, only behind Hulk who went for roughly €57.8 million when he joined Chinese Super League side Shanghai SIPG in 2016.

Capped nine times for his country, Paredes will become only the 15th player from Argentina to play for the Parisian giants, joining a host of names ranging from Mauricio Pochettino, Osvaldo Ardiles and Gabriel Heinze to Ezequiel Lavezzi, Angel Di Maria and Giovani Lo Celso most recently.

The 24-year-old was being touted as Chelsea’s replacement for the departed Cesc Fabregas though the club have now seemed to move onto other targets.

Cagliari midfielder Nicolo Barella is now the front runner to replace the Spaniard, having impressed this season for the Serie A side, with Juventus also seemingly in pursuit of the 21-year-old.

Barella has featured 22 times for the ‘I Rossoblu’ this season registering one goal and one assist and was named among the top 50 players under the age of 23 by The Gentleman Ultra in a piece for the Guardian last January.

With both Marco Verratti and Lassana Diarra both out injured, the signing of Paredes eases central midfield worries for German coach Thomas Tuchel.

Currently, PSG’s only fit first-team options are Adrien Rabiot, Julian Draxler and Christopher Nkunku though the latter could be joining Arsenal in this transfer window.

Rabiot’s current contract expires this summer with the Frenchman clear he would not be agreeing on a new one. The player is known as notoriously difficult to negotiate with and was expected to join Barcelona before the Catalan giants opted to sign Ajax wonder-kid Frenkie de Jong . 

The former Roma man will look to establish himself as a key player in Paris ahead of PSG’s first leg tie in the last-16 of the Champions League against Manchester United on the 12th February.

With Neymar out for PSG, the French club will need positive impacts from their new signings as they search for that illusive Champions League trophy.