Atletico Madrid have included Joao Felix in their squad for the opening La Liga match against Villarreal, despite ongoing speculation linking him with a return to Chelsea.
The La Liga side kick-off their league campaign at Villarreal this evening and Felix could feature for Diego Simeone’s men despite interest from the Blues.
Simeone has not held back in his praise for the Portuguese star after his impressive pre-season form, saying in a press conference reported by Marca on Sunday: “He’s doing very well. He has the same behaviour as any footballer who is in a squad, ready for whatever is proposed to him, competing with other teammates. Time will tell if we can use him tomorrow or not.”
Chelsea are currently locked in talks with Atletico for the 24-year-old attacker. Felix spent the second part of the 2022/23 season on loan at Stamford Bridge and he is understood to want a return to west London.
football.london understands Atletico are demanding around €60million (£51.4million) for the Portugal international – a price Chelsea are reluctant to pay. Enzo Maresca was asked about Felix ahead of the start of the weekend’s game with Man City, refusing to get too drawn on transfer speculation.
“The only thing I can say, I have to say the same: They are not our players, so it’s not correct to talk about a Napoli player or an Atletico Madrid player,” he admitted.
