Chelsea could see as many as 14 players leave this summer as the Blues face a mass exodus during the upcoming transfer window.
This is according to the Daily Mail, which states that Kante, Ziyech, Werner, Lukaku, Pulisic, Niguez, Rudiger, Christensen, Alonso, Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Kenedy, Kepa and Barkley could all leave Stamford Bridge this summer ahead of a crucial season for the London side.
This comes after the British government approved Todd Boehly’s takeover of the club which is near full completion and the way in which the American owner approaches this summer’s transfer market remains to be seen.
? Players who could leave Chelsea this summer:
?? Kanté
?? Ziyech
?? Werner
?? Lukaku
?? Pulisic
?? Niguez
?? Rüdiger
?? Christensen
?? Alonso
?? Azpilicueta
?? Jorginho
?? Kenedy
?? Kepa
??????? Barkley(Source: Daily Mail)
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) May 27, 2022
Is this good for Chelsea?
This could go either way for Thomas Tuchel’s side. The departing players are a mix of free transfers and players to be sold and how much money they could raise is unknown. This season was an underwhelming one for Chelsea and was a failure considering the money they spend over the last few years. A total revamp could help them progress by signing better players, such as selling Lukaku and bringing in Robert Lewandowski, or it could totally backfire.
How this could happen, is too many new players coming in at once and they don’t gel as quickly as Tuchel would want, Aston Villa being an example this year and Everton and Tottenham in past seasons. It is likely that Chelsea will sell most of the above to raise a lot of funds and then buy smart, addressing areas such as centre-back and centre-midfield. The upcoming window should be an interesting one for the London side, who hope to operate smoothly to close the gap to Man City and Liverpool.