£60M defender will be at Chelsea this summer – Frenchman says
William Gallas, a former player for CHELSEA, has spoken out about his thoughts over Captain Reece James’ potential summer exit.
The west London club revealed a pre-tax loss of £90.1 million for the year ending June 30, 2023, earlier this month, which has many supporters concerned that they would violate the Premier League’s financial fair play rules.
They now have to generate money by the end of June in order to avoid facing a points punishment. Selling academy players that they have developed in-house counts as 100% pure profit, making it the simplest method to comply with PSR regulations.
According to a recent report on The Times, The clubs hierarchy are preparing to cash in on James and feel they can generate in excess of £60m for the right-back to allay their financial issues.
James is regarded as one of the best full-backs in the Premier League and has recently caught the attentions of the likes of PSG and Real Madrid – who reportedly made enquiries for a potential deal last summer.
However, Gallas has urged the club to keep their home-grown talent and look to other players to raise funds.
‘CHELSEA won’t sell Reece James, you have to keep players who have come through the academy and you need players with that identity,’ the Frenchman said.
‘He is the captain, but unfortunately, he is often injured – despite this, we should keep him. It’s the same for Connor Gallagher, they both have to stay.
‘I know that there are problems with the finances at the moment, but they have to sell another player to fix this.’