Report: Leverkusen Rejects Chelsea's Opening £22M Bid for Leon Bailey

Chelsea have seen their opening £22m offer for Bayer Leverkusen starlet Leon Bailey rejected.

Chelsea have seen their opening £22m offer for Bayer Leverkusen starlet Leon Bailey rejected, according to the Daily Mail.

The media outlet has claimed that the Blues were rebuffed in their initial advances for the flying winger, and must now return home to weigh up their next move for the 20-year-old.

Bailey is believed to be one of Antonio Conte's main transfer targets ahead of the January transfer window opening, and has already hinted that he would like to move to the Premier League on social media.

Chelsea sent scouts to watch Bailey in action again against Stuttgart on Friday, and the former Genk starlet impressed by laying on both goals in Leverkusen's 2-0 triumph over their Bundesliga rivals.

The reigning English top flight champions' scouts have been left waxing lyrical over Bailey's talents, and Conte has now insisted that the Jamaica international is a player he wants to bring to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have apparently been keeping tabs on Bailey's progression ever since he moved to Europe as a 15-year-old, but have kept at a safe distance to prevent any other big clubs from becoming aware of their interest.

With their opening gambit now displayed, it will be interesting to see if any other suitors such as Manchester United - one-time admirers of Bailey - attempt to enter a bidding war with Conte's team.

Bailey only joined Leverkusen in January for around £12m after a successful two-year career with Genk, and has racked up five goals and four assists in 13 appearances this season.

The forward liked a tweet late last week from an account that alleged that Bailey would be the subject of a £20m bid from Chelsea ahead of next month - a move which led to many news outlets suggesting that he was up for a switch to England.

Leverkusen are no under pressure to sell their key asset with Bailey contracted to them until June 2022, and will be able to ask Chelsea to stump up a huge fee if they wish to prise him away from Germany.