One in, one out? Chelsea set for Serie A midfield swap this summer
Chelsea could be on for a major midfield reshuffle this summer if the latest reports are to be believed, with suggestions that Jorginho could be seeking pastures new while Tiemoue Bakayoko is set for yet another return to Stamford Bridge.
The Italian midfielder, who came third in the Ballon d’Or voting after helping his side to Champions League success and Italy to Euro 2020 glory, is thought to be keen on a move away from the club which had made him their heartbeat, but now look as though they may need a different sort of operator in midfield.
Worse still for the Blues, Jorginho’s contract expires in 2023, meaning that this summer is the last opportunity to get any return on their hefty investment on the Italian in a financial sense, though they will point to their success on the pitch as return enough.
And, as per Nizaar Kinsella, a return to Italy is the favoured outcome this summer.
‘He and his entourage want to come back to Italy, #Juventus seems to be the strongest club on him at the moment’, he told CalcioMercato in Italy.
🎙️@NizaarKinsella to CMIT TV: “#Jorginho has a very close relationship with Thomas Tuchel but his contract will expire in 2023. He and his entourage want to come back to Italy, #Juventus seems to be the strongest club on him at the moment”
— calciomercato.it (@calciomercatoit) April 27, 2022
Bakayoko to return
In other Chelsea news, it seems as though Tiemoue Bakayoko could be on his way back to Stamford Bridge following yet another underwhelming loan spell in Serie A.
The French midfielder was sent on loan to AC Milan, but has not played a minute since January, with the Italian side now not obliged to buy the midfielder after failing to meet the appearance requirements.
It looks like Tiemoue Bakayoko will be back at Chelsea after AC Milan avoided paying the obligation to buy which was activated on appearances. He hasn’t played a minute of football since January. https://t.co/tLs3gEnDBG
— Nizaar Kinsella (@NizaarKinsella) April 27, 2022
It could finally be time to cut ties with the midfielder, and accept the hefty loss on the former Monaco man, unless Thomas Tuchel sees something in him that previous Blues bosses didn’t.
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This article was edited by Conor Laird.
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1 | Leeds United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2 | Manchester City | 0 | 0 | 0 |
3 | Manchester United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
4 | West Ham United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
5 | Everton FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
6 | Southampton FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
7 | Chelsea FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
8 | Arsenal FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
9 | Newcastle United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
10 | Leicester City | 0 | 0 | 0 |
11 | Liverpool FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
12 | Aston Villa | 0 | 0 | 0 |
13 | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 0 | 0 |
14 | Fulham FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
15 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 | Crystal Palace | 0 | 0 | 0 |
17 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | 0 | 0 |
18 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 0 | 0 |
19 | AFC Bournemouth | 0 | 0 | 0 |
20 | Brentford FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Player | Team | Goals |
---|---|---|
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 23 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 23 |
Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 18 |
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 |
Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 16 |
De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 15 |
Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15 |
Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 15 |
Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 14 |
Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 13 |
Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 12 |
Maddison, James | Leicester City | 12 |
Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 11 |
Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 11 |
Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
Richarlison | Everton FC | 11 |
Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 11 |
Raphinha | Leeds United | 11 |
Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa | 11 |
Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
---|---|---|---|
Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 11 |
Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 10 |
Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 11 |
Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 11 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 10 |
Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 10 |
Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 10 |
Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 9 |
Rudiger, Antonio | Chelsea FC | 0 | 9 |
Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 0 | 8 |
Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 8 |
Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
Player | Team | Assists |
---|---|---|
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 11 |
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 10 |
Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
Maddison, James | Leicester City | 9 |
James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 9 |
Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 9 |
De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 8 |
Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 8 |
Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 7 |
Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 7 |
Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |