Wolves 'prepare' for bidding war with Nottingham Forest as Chelsea drop interest in Aston Villa ace

Euro 2024 has gotten off to a scintillating start. We have seen plenty of shocks and fascinating encounters - not to mention England’s first victory of the tournament, as they defeated Serbia by a score of 1-0. But what is happening around Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa today?

Wolves have been linked with a Europa Conference League winner who is also in the sights of Nottingham Forest and Leicester City - meanwhile, Chelsea’s interest in a young Aston Villa star appears to have waned, as the Blues are said to believe the Villans are asking for too much money at the moment.

Wolves could enter ‘bidding war’ with Nottingham Forest and Leicester City for David Carmo

Wolves have been linked with a move for Olympiakos star David Carmo in the summer transfer window - however, they are not alone, as Premier League midlands rivals Nottingham Forest and Leicester City are also thought to be interested in a move for the two-cap Angola star.

This is according to a recent report from Portuguese media outlet Jornal de Noticias. While he currently plays for Olympiakos and played a pivotal role in their unprecedented Europa Conference League winning campaign, he is only with the club on loan - his parent team is Porto.

He has a release clause of £14.8 million in his Porto contract. While this figure is likely to put Olympiakos off the prospect of signing him on a permanent basis, it will not deter Wolves, Forest or Leicester. None of the three clubs have made an official approach for the 24-year-old as things stand - it remains to be seen who will get their hands on him before the end of the summer.

Chelsea ready to ‘walk away’ from transfer for Aston Villa starlet Jhon Duran

Before the summer transfer window opened, Jhon Duran had been heavily linked with a move to Chelsea. He fits their transfer policy, being an exciting, young attacking player - but now, it seems the Blues’ interest in the Colombian international has faded.

Writing on his official Substack page, journalist Simon Phillips penned: “SPTC sources have heard Chelsea are ‘preparing’ to walk away from the deal, perhaps putting pressure on Villa to reduce their asking price for him.

“As of last night, talks had continued yesterday, and I do believe talks will continue again today. There is still every chance this deal gets done, but it will need one side to fold on their stance. Villa are not only asking for £40m for Duran, but they are also asking for too much of the fee up front. SPTC sources have now heard Chelsea could soon walk away from this one and turn attentions elsewhere.

“Chelsea have been speaking internally on other options they could go for this week, and the most recent names mentioned to me via our sources is Ivan Toney of Brentford, Dominic Solanke of Bournemouth, and Evan Ferguson of Brighton. There is still interest in Serhou Guirassy of Stuttgart, and Tammy Abraham of Roma too. Other names are also on our shortlist.”