Enzo Fernandez ruled out of tonight’s match for Benfica as he further protest to come to Chelsea

Enzo Fernandez ruled out of tonight’s match for Benfica as he further protest to come to Chelsea.

Nizaar Kinsella of the Evening Standard is reporting that Enzo Fernandez will not play for Benfica tonight as he looks to complete a last minute transfer to Chelsea.

Enzo Fernandez will not play for Benfica tonight as talks continue over his exit.

However, Chelsea are running out of time to seal a British record £115m transfer on #DeadlineDay with no breakthrough yet.

✍️ @NizaarKinsella https://t.co/VyzqX3QkW0

— Standard Sport (@standardsport) January 31, 2023

The midfielder has been trying to push through a move all month, and while he’s played for them recently, they will be without his services tonight against Arouca. This seems like a joint decision to take the focus away from him and put it back on another game the Portuguese side need to win to keep their title charge going.

At this stage, the transfer is balanced so delicately between “happening” and “not happening” that we’re not quite sure which way it will fall.

The fact he’s not playing tonight shows how close we are to a deal being done – but should not be read into as a sign that it’s definitely happening. He just wants to be available and sitting next to a pen and the telephone just in case the chance comes through for a late dash to London.