Levante Midfielder Hands in Transfer Request After Seeing Bournemouth Bid Rejected
Levante midfielder Jefferson Lerma has handed in a transfer request after a £22.2m bid from Bournemouth was rejected by the Spanish club.
The Sun reports that Lerma is frustrated that he is being denied a move to the Premier League and has now submitted a transfer request in the hopes of forcing through a deal.
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Lerma played in all four of Colombia's World Cup matches, including the penalty shootout defeat to England in the last 16. The 23-year-old has made nine appearances for his country so and has been touted as a future star.
The Colombian joined Levante initially on loan in 2015 and after making over 30 appearances for the Spanish side, he joined on a permanent deal in 2016 for a fee of €600,000. Last season the midfielder was pivotal to Levante's survival, helping them to avoid relegation and finish 15th in La Liga.
Bournemouth have already completed the signings of Diego Rico and David Brooks this window but manager Eddie Howe is reportedly determined to add Lerma's defensive steel to his squad before the season starts.
Pre-season has so far been a success for Bournemouth as the south coast side travelled to Spain for a training camp.
Speaking about their training camp to the club's website Howe said: "It has been really tough. We’ve really worked the players again, as we have done in the past. We haven’t given them too much free time and sometimes we’ve had three sessions on a day.
"We’ve tested them in a different way with the team building exercises. We go back a tighter group and a better squad for the experiences that we’ve had out here. The facilities out here, and everything that we’ve been able to do, have made it a first class trip."
