'Natural for him to take the next step' - Ghana boss insists Antoine Semenyo must leave Bournemouth amid Liverpool and Man City transfer links in bombshell interview at World Cup draw

Over the summer, the former Bristol City star, who has also been linked with Tottenham, penned a new bumper deal until 2030 - seemingly putting paid to a Bournemouth departure. 

At the time of extending his contract, he said: "I've grown so much at the club, both on and off the pitch, and I'm really happy to have signed ahead of returning for pre-season. From the fans to the staff and my teammates, I can't speak highly enough of the people around the club. It's a great place to be and I'm excited to get back to Bournemouth and continue the hard work with the new season just around the corner."

However, it recently emerged that Semenyo has a £65m January release clause, which reportedly is set to drop to £50m ($66.6m) next summer. The wide man - who has scored six goals and bagged three assists in 13 Premier League appearances this season - seems destined for a big-money move, something Ghana head coach Addo is pushing for.

After it was revealed that Semenyo's Ghana would take on England in the group stages of the 2026 World Cup, Addo spoke about the in-demand player's future.

He told The Athletic at Friday's World Cup draw: "He has done very well at Bournemouth, but with all the respect for Bournemouth and what they’re doing, surely it is natural for him to take the next step. Whether its in the winter or summer, it is a difference question but it won’t make a difference for us. I’m looking forward to him showing more of what he can to the world."

Incidentally, Ghana and England will also face off against Croatia and Panama in Group L.

In November, Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola stated he is not worried about speculation that Semenyo could leave the club in January. However, since these remarks, the Cherries have slid down to 14th in the Premier League after being in the top four earlier this season.

He told reporters last month: "We are in November. Antoine is our player, he will continue being our player. In January, you can ask me about the market in January, but right now I'm not worried about the next markets. It's something that especially you know that I hate to talk about in August, January, the moments when the market is open, but it is not one of those moments. It's November. I'm more worried about the situation of the players to play tomorrow, the short-term, the things that really matter and in January, we will talk about whatever happens, the players we need. But it is not something that I'm worried about today."

Bournemouth, who have lost four of their last five league games, will hope to end their wretched run of form when they host Chelsea - who will be looking to bounce back from their own shock 3-1 defeat to lowly Leeds United in midweek. They may need Semenyo to be firing on all cylinders if they are to win this contest on Saturday afternoon in front of their home fans.

Iraola added: "I expect the best Chelsea. We know this before we play tomorrow, so we have to be at our very best because the opposition is playing very well. They are getting better and better with Enzo [Maresca] and I think they will demand a lot [from us] defensively.

"The players understand that now we are in a period where we will need to rotate the team a little bit to change players because we are playing every three, four days. Obviously, everyone wants to start but I'm also very happy with the performance of and the attitude of everyone that comes on the bench."