Welcome to the summer silly season! Chelsea FC were essentially “champions” of this competition, last time out, as they outspent the rest of the world, by a considerable margin, in the last summer transfer window.
Expect Owner Roman Abramovich to greenlight another summer spending spree this time around, so let’s dive straight in with the latest Blues transfer news and notes. This edition focuses more on the selling portion of the transfer window, instead of the buying component.
It’s always worth mentioning again that getting rid of your deadwood, selling off the fringe players, correctly, is just as important as obtaining the right set of new players. It just doesn’t get the same level of attention.
The Express says that Stamford Bridge is looking to offload five players:
Tammy Abraham, Marcos Alonso, Emerson Palmieri, Ross Barkley, and Michy Batshuayi, and they could part ways with two more: Andreas Christensen and Ruben Loftus-Cheek. This is for the purpose of generatig more funds for the big summer shopping they want to do.
Chelsea have been linked to a couple of high profile, very expensive players. Christensen and Palmieri have been linked in a potential Achraf Hakimi swap deal with Inter Milan.
Of course, to get the Hakimi deal over the line, it’s going to take money, a whole lot of spending money, it’s going to take plenty of money to do it right child.”
Sorry for the George Harrison bit there.
Speaking of taking lots and lots of money, that’s what will be required to get Chelsea’s other top target this summer, Erling Haaland. While the southwest London club is considered the front-runner to land Borussia Dortmund’s scoring sensation, among a field of many would be suitors, they might have to play the long game on this one.
His astronomical release clause will drop by more than half, reportedly, next summer.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.
Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.