Antonio Conte makes questionable decision, £20m Chelsea ace set for axe

Posted by

Despite reports insisting Chelsea boss Antonio Conte wants to strengthen his defence this summer, he is reportedly set to sell another defender.

After delivering the Premier League title in his first season in charge, the Italian tactician is expected to significantly strengthen his squad this summer ahead of the club’s return to the Champions League.

Having also lost John Terry this summer along with the exit of Branislav Ivanovic in January, Conte and Chelsea are arguably lucky that they didn’t suffer with more injuries which could have derailed their title bid.

Moving forward though, they must bring in reinforcements and according to The Sun that need to bolster the backline could become even more prominent when they sell Nathan Ake to Bournemouth in a £20 deal.

The 22-year-old spent the first half of last season on loan with Eddie Howe’s side and impressed before being recalled in January.

It was a bad move for the defensive ace in truth as he ultimately went on to just sit on the bench at Stamford Bridge, which would have undoubtedly been a real source of frustration for him given that he had been playing regularly with the Cherries.

However, it looks as though he will finally get his move back to Bournemouth, as the report claims Howe is ready to launch a bid of £20m for him after having an initial offer of £18m rejected.

It’s claimed that Ake will be offloaded to help fund Chelsea’s moves for the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Leonardo Bonucci and Alex Sandro, and so it looks as though it will be a deal that suits all parties moving forward.

Nevertheless, the Dutch international had shown a lot of promise and quality, and it will be regarded as a major shame by many that he wasn’t afforded more of a chance at Stamford Bridge.

More Stories Nathan Ake