A Chelsea player praised for his speed could now push to leave Stamford Bridge this month, amid the real uncertainty surrounding his teammate Ben Chilwell.
Chilwell out of favour under Maresca and could leave Chelsea
The England international defender was heavily linked with a summer exit when the UK window was open for business, with some reports even claiming that Chilwell held a serious interest in joining Man United.
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Alas, Erik ten Hag opted not to swoop for the 27-year-old, who has now been left in limbo in west London. Manager Enzo Maresca has previously made it clear that Chilwell does not feature in his long-term plans over favoured option Marc Cucurella, with the Italian telling both him and Raheem Sterling that to leave during the summer window.
"We have a big squad and it is impossible to give all of them minutes, so probably it is better to leave," said Maresca on Chilwell's future at Chelsea.
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"Brutal? I just try to be honest. I spoke with Raheem before the City game and said he is going to struggle to get minutes with us. Chilwell is a lovely guy but because of his position he is going to struggle with us."
The £200,000-per-week ace, who cost Chelsea around £45 million to sign from Leicester City in 2020, has gone on to make over a century of appearances in all competitions for the Blues – captaining the club on more than one occasion and helping Chelsea to a Champions League triumph in his first season.
Chilwell is still being linked with a Chelsea exit, as a host of windows across Europe and beyond remain open for business, including Turkey and Greece. There are even rumours that Jose Mourinho is planning an ambitious Fenerbahce swoop for Chilwell in the coming days, which would be quite the coup for the Super Lig giants.
Alongside Chilwell, Maresca could seek to offload other surplus members of his squad to the east of Europe, with AEK Athens targeting Chelsea striker David Datro Fofana as well.
Chelsea sold Angelo Gabriel to Al-Nassr outside the UK window earlier this week, so there is reason to believe Chilwell or Fofana could follow the Brazilian.
David Datro Fofana will push to leave Chelsea this month
According to Football Insider and journalist Pete O'Rourke, Fofana in particular will push to leave Chelsea this month, as he chases more senior minutes. He is also believed to be training away from the first team right now, as Maresca does not see him as part of his long-term Chelsea project.
The Ivory Coast international spent some of last season on loan at Burnley, scoring four Premier League goals under Vincent Kompany at Turf Moor, and attracted late summer interest from the likes of Sunderland and Everton according to O'Rourke.
"He (Fofana) was aggressive, wanted to win every duel, he's very fast and it's a good starting point for him and we're fortunate to recruit him," said Kompany on Fofana during their time together in Lancashire.
"These type of players can decide to go somewhere else and have other options but he's ready to put it all on the line for us."
