Monaco are reportedly keen on Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi, and the Ligue 1 champions are currently leading the race for his signature.
As reported by The Guardian, Chelsea signed the Belgian striker from Marseille for £33m last July, and it looks as though he’s barely going to make the year mark at Stamford Bridge.
It’s a puzzling situation given that the 23-year-old did a reasonable job as a back-up option behind Diego Costa this past season, scoring nine goals in 28 appearances for Antonio Conte’s title-winning team.
However, that wasn’t enough to convince the Italian tactician it seems, who handed him just one Premier League start all year, while Batshuayi also enjoyed a good finish to the campaign with goals against West Brom, Watford and Sunderland.
Nevertheless, for whatever reason he hasn’t proven to Conte in these 11 months that he deserves a spot in the squad for the long term, and ESPN FC note that Monaco are leading the race to take him back to France this summer.
West Ham are also mentioned as an interested party in the report but it’s questionable as to whether Chelsea would want to sell to a city rival. In turn, Monaco seem like a decent solution as they will be looking to bolster their squad with several key individuals being sold this summer after they won the league title.
With Chelsea expected to bring in another top class striker ahead of next season as Diego Costa looks set for the exit door, Batshuayi isn’t going to profit from the uncertainty at Stamford Bridge as it still looks as though he’s on his way out.