Omari Hutchinson remains an Ipswich Town player despite reports that Brentford technically met the value of his release clause at the club.
Former Arsenal and Chelsea winger Omari Hutchinson had a £35m release clause in his contract earlier this summer, active after Ipswich Town were relegated from the Premier League.
News broke this week that Brentford had bid £35m, seemingly activating the clause. But that turned out not to be the case.
Fabrizio Romano reports that the problem was that the structure of Brentford’s bid didn’t meet the requirements set out in the clause. As a result, Ipswich were under no obligation to sell, and they decided not to.
Since then, Hutchinson’s release clause has expired, as it was only valid until 17:00 on Tuesday afternoon. Brentford made multiple bids that day, but failed to activate the clause before the deadline.
Simon Collings reports for The Standard that Ipswich don’t actually want to sell Hutchinson this summer. If they do, they’re looking for a fee close to £40m. Without the £35m release clause, they’re in a strong position to turn any other offers down.
As for the player, Hutchinson is keen to move back to London and believes Brentford is the best next step. Chelsea have the right to match any accepted bid, but they aren’t expected to take it up.
Brentford are seemingly pushing to sign Hutchinson to cover for Bryan Mbeumo leaving for Manchester United, with David Ornstein reporting that United have agreed a deal of £65m + £6m in add-ons for the winger.
That bid being accepted by Brentford likely intensifies the pursuit of Hutchinson.