As good a squad as Chelsea have at present, they do have a handful of players coming towards the end of their contracts, and still have to deal with the fall-out of Romelu Lukaku’s ill-advised interview with Sky Italy.
Though the latter appears smoothed over for now, one has the feeling that any apology was lacking in sincerity and more a PR exercise to win back the fan base.
Lukaku’s sentiments were not just throwaway comments, and however the media outlet wanted to spin the narrative, the fact is the Belgian said what he said. There’s no escaping that fact.
Assuming that Thomas Tuchel and the club were able to convince the player that his future is indeed at Stamford Bridge, that’s one less concern that the club will have heading into the summer.
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The other pressing issue is whether the Blues are able to tie down one of their most consistent performers, Antonio Rudiger, to a new deal.
The German has already rejected their overtures and appears to be waiting on an improved offer from Chelsea before deciding whether to accept or not.
According to Sky Sports, now a surprise name has entered the frame for his services.
The outlet suggested that Real Madrid, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich had already staked their claims, with Barcelona now monitoring developments.
Whilst the Catalans would appear to be the least likely at this stage because of their financial problems, it seems abundantly clear that president, Joan Laporta, is doing his upmost to get the Blaugranes back into Europe’s elite as quickly as practicable.