Chelsea are expected to conduct a flash fire-sale before jetting off to the United States to continue their pre-season preparations
Chelsea reportedly want to sell four players very soon (Image: Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
Mauricio Pochettino is reportedly hoping to offload four players before Chelsea leave for their pre-season tour of the United States on Monday. The Blues are set to play four games in the US, with the first of which coming against Wrexham at the Kenan Memorial Stadium on July 20.
Three days later, Chelsea will lock horns with Brighton. Then, on July 27, Whe west Londoners will face Newcastle United and finally Fulham on July 30 before returning to their Cobham training ground to continue preparations for the new Premier League campaign.
Ahead of the summer, co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley were tasked with the difficult mission of conducting a clear-out at Stamford Bridge after the Blues ended last season with a 30-man squad. Numerous high-profile players have already been culled from the first-team, with Kai Havertz, Mateo Kovacic and Mason Mount all finding new homes.
N’Golo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy have all moved to the Saudi Pro League, while Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Christian Pulisic have both joined AC Milan. Cesar Azpilicueta has joined Atletico Madrid on a free transfer and David Datro Fofana has joined Union Berlin on loan.
While ten players may have already been taken off the books at Chelsea, the mass exodus is expected to continue. According to the Evening Standard, the Blues told Romelu Lukaku, Hakim Ziyech, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang not to report for pre-season training last week.
It’s said that the quartet were given a return day of Monday, but Pochettino wants them gone before then – which is essentially just 24 hours away. Lukaku reportedly rejected a lucrative offer from a Saudi Arabian club this summer, but the Belgian seems intent of returning to the Serie A.
Hakim Ziyech almost wrapped up a move to the middle east too, but he couldn’t agree the final terms with Al-Nassr over a three-contract. As it stands, it’s remains unclear whether the Saudi Arabian outfit will revisit a move for the Moroccan after he reportedly failed a medical too.
As for Callum Hudson-Odoi, he spent last season on loan at Bayer Leverkusen and, ultimately, failed to impress. Aubameyang, on the other hand, hardly featured for Chelsea last season and, even when he was drafted into the first-team, he didn’t have the desired impact either.
Soucre: football.london
