Transfer news expert Fabrizio Romano has provided an update on the situation surrounding Chelsea left-back Ian Maatsen in his exclusive CaughtOffside column.
The Dutchman came close to joining Burnley in the summer before rejecting the move, according to Romano, and he’s yet to agree a new contract at Stamford Bridge, putting his future in further doubt ahead of January.
Romano says contract talks between Chelsea and Maatsen are ongoing, so Blues fans can perhaps have some hope that they will tie this promising young player down to a new deal soon.
Of course, there is the issue of the amount of playing time Maatsen can hope to have at Chelsea, and this may be an issue preventing him from committing his future to the club at the moment.
Ben Chilwell and Marc Cucurella will surely remain the first choice options on the left hand side of Chelsea’s defence for the time being, so it will be interesting to see if Maatsen fancies his chances of competing for that spot, or if he feels his career would be best served by moving on.
“There have been further reports about Ian Maatsen and his future at Chelsea, so I thought I’d clarify them here,” Romano said.
“From what I understand, Maatsen spoke to Chelsea in July and August but there was no agreement over a new deal. That’s why they were ready to sell him to Burnley, but he rejected the chance to go there.
“Now contract talks remain ongoing, so let’s see what’s going to happen in the next weeks and months ahead of January window. Nothing has been decided yet.”