Man Utd and Liverpool offers REJECTED as Chelsea ‘agree deal’ for ‘special’ defender

Manchester United and Liverpool have failed in their quest to bring Yisa Alao to Old Trafford and Anfield, respectively, with Fabrizio Romano revealing that Chelsea have agreed a deal with Sheffield Wednesday for the left-back.

Liverpool and Man Utd were among the clubs that were keen on signing Alao in the January transfer window. The Daily Mail reported on January 1 that both the Reds and the Red Devils had made offers for the Wednesday defender.

Man Utd’s offer for Alao was reported to be worth £450,000, but the details of Liverpool’s bid were not revealed.

On January 21, 2026, The Athletic and journalist Ben Jacobs reported that Man Utd were ‘in talks’ for Alao.

Chelsea were still deemed the ‘frontrunners’ for the left-back, who made his Championship debut for Sheffield Wednesday against Derby County at Hillsborough on December 15.

It seems that Chelsea have indeed won the race for the defender, with Man Utd and Liverpool both failing in their bids.

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Chelsea and Wednesday have struck a deal over Alao.

The defender made his debut for the Wednesday first team in August 2025 and was described as “ a special boy” by Wednesday manager Henrik Pedersen in The Star this week.

Romano wrote on X at 1:35pm on January 22: “Chelsea agree deal to sign talented 17 year old fullback Yisa Alao from Sheffield Wednesday, here we go!

“Initial fee over £500k plus heavy add-ons.

“Chelsea beat 3 more PL top clubs to the signing.”

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