A “quality” forward player has set his sights on leaving Chelsea for another Premier League club, who are believed to be in talks over a deal for him right now.
Players who could be sold by Chelsea after Ian Maatsen
Left-back Ian Maatsen comes as Chelsea’s first high-profile sale of the summer window, as the Dutchman swaps west London for Villa Park in a deal worth north of £34 million.
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Chelsea agreed a deal to sell Maatsen to Villa last week, with the 22-year-old also shaking hands on a six-year contract in the Midlands. Teenage midfielder Omari Kellyman also goes the other way to Cobham in a separate £19 million deal.
Maatsen joins veteran defender Thiago Silva in departing Chelsea, with the latter choosing to return to Brazil and rejoin boyhood club Fluminense upon the expiry of his Blues contract.
There are many other players who may not play a part under new head coach Enzo Maresca next season, as the Italian gears up for his first campaign in the Stamford Bridge hot seat.
|
Chelsea’s best-performing players in the Premier League last season |
Average match rating (WhoScored) |
|---|---|
|
Cole Palmer |
7.48 |
|
Conor Gallagher |
7.13 |
|
Nicolas Jackson |
7.07 |
|
Moises Caicedo |
6.85 |
|
Noni Madueke |
6.84 |
Romelu Lukaku, Armando Broja, Malang Sarr, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Trevoh Chalobah, Lesley Ugochukwu, Marc Cucurella, Mykhailo Mudryk and Conor Gallagher are all players who could be sold by Chelsea this summer, according to various reports.
Lukaku has already given his green-light to join AC Milan, but there remains some work to do in club-to-club talks, as the Rossoneri are pushing for a loan deal while Chelsea would prefer to sell permanently (La Gazzetta).
Another player who’s eyeing the exit door with Lukaku is Omari Hutchinson, coming after a very productive loan spell at Ipswich Town last season.
Hutchinson keen to leave Chelsea as Ipswich open talks
The 20-year-old, who Chelsea apparently value up to £30 million, made 44 Championship appearances at Portman Road with under half coming as full starts. The forward racked up 10 goals and five assists in that time, playing a hand in their climb back to the Premier League.
Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna, according to BBC journalist Nizaar Kinsella, appears keen to reunite with the player next season.
Hutchinson wants to leave Chelsea and return to Ipswich, with the Tractor Boys opening talks over a deal. The winger is also free to leave in the eyes of Chelsea, as Ipswich chiefs eye up a permanent deal.
“[He was] really good, really good,” said former Chelsea boss Graham Potter on Hutchinson after a friendly defeat to Villa in 2022.
“[He was] dangerous, asked questions all the time, I think he hit the bar in the first half, but throughout the game he showed his quality. He wasn’t the only one, it was a spirited performance against an experienced Premier League side so it was good.”
