Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has confirmed the club want to bring Joao Felix back this summer, but admitted the situation remains up in the air.
Felix joined Chelsea on loan in January, though the Blues do not have an option to make the move a permanent one and the forward signed a one-year extension to his Atletico contract at the same time, taking him through to 2027.
The 23-year-old has scored only twice for Chelsea since arriving, and while he was a regular under Graham Potter, he has been named on the bench by Frank Lampard for the club’s last two matches.
Felix, signed by Atletico for £113million in 2019, told reporters last month “no one knows” the future when asked if he wanted to remain in London, though Chelsea’s lack of European football next season and the uncertainty over the managerial situation could impact any decision.
It had appeared that Felix’s relationship with Atletico boss Diego Simeone was increasingly strained before his loan move to Chelsea, which raises the question of whether he would have a role at the club next season, and Cerezo has accepted the Portugese star is not certain to return.
He told El Larguero: “What’s next for Joao? He will have a place in the team if he comes back here, for sure.
“We don’t know what will happen. In football, you can’t take anything for granted.”
