Rennes head coach Habib Beye has urged the club to reject all offers from Chelsea for Jeremy Jacquet this January.
The Blues are keen to bolster their defensive options before the transfer deadline and have identified Jacquet as their primary target having scouted the 20-year-old for a number of months.
Jacquet, enjoying only his second full season of professional football, is widely regarded to be among the most promising young centre-backs in France and was heavily linked with Arsenal last summer.
However, Chelsea have since emerged as the clear frontrunners to secure a deal for Jacquet and widespread reports over the weekend claimed the Club World Cup winners had agreed personal terms with the defender.
While Jacquet is said to be eager to push through a move to Stamford Bridge, Rennes’ asking price – thought to be in the region of £56million – is currently proving a stumbling block in transfer negotiations.
It’s understood there is a reluctance within Chelsea’s hierarchy to shell out in excess of £50m for the France Under-21 international – but this could change if Rennes refuse to budge on their valuation.
It remains to be seen if Jacquet has played his final match for Rennes, with the centre-half forced to miss the side’s 1-1 draw with Le Havre through suspension.
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Asked for an update on Jacquet’s situation after Sunday’s Ligue 1 contest, Rennes boss Beye told reporters: ‘I believe that today he is a very important player for our objectives.
‘If tomorrow we were to let him go, we would have to lower our expectations.
‘When you have offers from such a club, it can make things a little hesitant.
‘I’m very firm on this situation. He is an essential player for us.’
While Beye called on Rennes to ‘resist’ all proposals for Jacquet, he was unable to rule out the possibility that the young Frenchman could be on the move.
‘He is one of the best players in our team and so we have to resist that approach,’ the ex-Newcastle and Aston Villa full-back added.
‘There are several factors I don’t control in all of this. We’ll see what happens in the coming days.’
According to Beye, it would be ‘beneficial’ for everyone involved – including Chelsea – that Jacquet stays put to continue his development with Rennes.
‘The power I have is to talk to him and tell him what I think of him at Stade Rennais, what I think of his development,’ he went on.
‘I know where he wants to go in his career. I think that today, I’m contributing, we’re all contributing as a staff to help him progress, to the point where he’s now being targeted by his best clubs.
‘In five months, he’ll be even more accomplished, and so, [if he stays] it can be beneficial for everyone, for the club, for Jeremy, and for the club that might come looking for him.’
Jacquet’s current contract with Rennes runs through to June 2029.
Facing the media ahead of Chelsea’s win over Brentford, Liam Rosenior stressed that the club would only turn to the transfer market if the ‘right player’ is available this month.
‘I think if we do, it needs to be the right player. We need to be patient,’ the newly appointed Chelsea boss said.
‘I want to assess this group. It’s really, really important to me. I like to give the players I work with a chance to show good surprises.
‘We still have time. We have conversations every day, myself and the board, about potential transfers, both out and in.
‘But at the same time, I need to focus on the players in the building.
‘If I feel it’s the right time or the right player, then we’ll make that decision.’
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