Chelsea owner Todd Boehly set to terminate THREE FLOP summer signings ahead of January transfer
Chelsea is planning to “axe” three stars in a £110 million transfer outflow, including a new hire.
Shortly after Mauricio Pochettino urged the club’s board to “improve” his team, Chelsea is prepared to approve the transfer of three players in January.
In an effort to finance more moves in January, Chelsea plans to cut three players from their starting lineup.
It comes after the Blues’ 2-0 loss against Everton caused them to tumble to 12th in the Premier League standings, where they ended the previous campaign. Despite investing over £400 million on new players in the summer, Chelsea has struggled this season, winning only five of its 16 top-flight games.
Mauricio Pochettino urged the Chelsea board to “improve” his team in the “next transfer market” in remarks made following the match at Goodison Park. Ivan Toney of Brentford and Victor Osimhen of Napoli are two players who have been linked to a move to Stamford Bridge, making a new centre striker a top priority for Pochettino.
To comply with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) criteria, Chelsea will need to sell players during the January transfer window if they wish to add a high-profile striker to their roster. Three stars are already anticipated to be let go.
ESPN claims that Chelsea is prepared to approve the exits of Ian Maatsen, Noni Madueke, and Trevor Chalobah during the winter transfer window.
Due to a thigh injury, Chalobah has not played a minute for Chelsea this season and is expected to leave the team. Crystal Palace is one of the teams that is interested in signing him. With two and a half years remaining on his current deal, the 24-year-old made 33 appearances in all competitions last season.
Chalobah received his Stamford Bridge debut under former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel, who is a huge fan of the player. The centre-back was reportedly in talks with Bayern Munich for a £50 million move back in August, according to Sky Sports. However, the deal eventually fell through in the summer.
Maatsen is another player who may leave the team; Borussia Dortmund is keeping an eye on him in preparation for a possible January transfer.
ESPN notes that it’s unclear if Dortmund intends to sign Maatsen long-term. After a productive loan stint at Burnley last season, the Dutch left-back, who has made nine Premier League games so far this season, was predicted to return for £31.5 million in the summer.
However, Chelsea paid Madueke £28.5 million to join Chelsea from PSV in January, but he hasn’t been very successful there, scoring only twice in 20 games. Under Pochettino, the 21-year-old has dropped down the ranks and hasn’t started a premier league match since October’s 2-0 loss to Brentford.
Other players who might be sacrificed as Chelsea looks to balance the books after a challenging start to the season are Marc Cucurella and Armando Broja. In Ben Chilwell’s absence, Cucurella filled in at left defence, and Broja has scored just once this season—during their 2-0 victory over Fulham.