It came down to the very last day of the regular season, but Chelsea FC have clinched a berth in the UEFA Champions League for next term. After the match, a 2-0 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, Blues boss Frank Lampard gave a very news worthy postgame presser.
He confirmed the departure of forward and Spanish international Pedro, a player that has been widely linked with a move away. Lampard also discussed how qualification for Champions League will help revenue, and thus be a big boon to player recruitment.
Having done nothing the January window and been banned from doing business last summer, the southwest London outfit is making up for lost time. It’s been widely reported that they have agreed to personal terms with Kai Havertz, and now it’s just up to Stamford Bridge and Bayer Leverkusen to strike a deal on price.
Havertz would join Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech as new transfer buys. If it seems like the attack is getting crowded, well, with Pedro departing, one more roster spot has opened up.
“Pedro has played his last game for the club. The lads have just pretty much serenaded him in the changing room and rightly so because of the career he has had generally and for this club,” said Lampard.
“It was his last Premier League game, but the impact he has had here is huge. I want to say a big thanks to Peds and wish him well as he goes forward. He is here for the remainder of games, but a big player of the club leaves and the spirit of the club I saw afterwards was pretty special,” he added.
On the topic of UCL qualification and how it affects the upcoming transfer window, Lampard first remarked how the topic doesn’t immediately gel with a postgame press conference.
“In brutal honesty I would say yes. [That is] not to say exactly where that will go, because that’s not a conversation today off the back of the game straight away,” he said.
He then answered the question in more detail.
“We know that the economics of the Champions League are big, we know that,” Lampard added.
“We know the prestige, top players want to play in the Champions League, but if we’re looking to recruit in certain areas then I think it may help… We’ll try to better ourselves in any way possible.”
Chelsea have the FA Cup final against Arsenal on Saturday, and then the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie with Bayern Munich, where they trail 0-3. After that, it should be a really interesting transfer window.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly contributes to WGN TV, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Now and SB Nation.
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