Chelsea have confirmed that midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko has been released by the club.
In a club statement, Chelsea announced that Bakayoko is one of 13 players that will be leaving Stamford Bridge at the end of his contract this summer. The 28-year-old was fresh off winning Ligue 1 with Monaco in 2017 when he was signed for £40million, back in 2017.
Bakayoko was a regular in Antonio Conte’s side as he made 43 appearances overall and lifted the FA Cup in his debut season. However, his time as part of the Chelsea squad was short-lived, with Bakayoko being shipped out on loan for the next five seasons, without making a single further appearance for the Blues.
The one-time France international has spent three seasons with AC Milan, where he won Serie A in 2022, sandwiched between a stint at Napoli and a year-long return to Monaco. The expiry of his contract marks the end of a costly transfer mistake for the club, though Chelsea thanked Bakayoko for playing his part during the 2017/18 campaign.
Summing up the last six years of his career, the statement said: “The midfielder joined the Blues from Monaco back in 2017 and featured frequently under Antonio Conte, clocking up 43 appearances and playing the whole of the 2018 FA Cup final win over Manchester United. He scored three goals during that campaign.
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“The Frenchman subsequently embarked on several loans, including back to Monaco and at AC Milan when they won Serie A. We thank Tiemoue for his contribution during his season at Stamford Bridge.”
Bakayoko was joined on the released list by academy graduate goalkeeper Nathan Baxter, who has spent the last two seasons with Hull City, Northern Ireland international Sam McClelland and Dujon Sterling, who made two first team appearances for the Blues.
With just 43 appearances to his name in Chelsea blue, it amounts to almost £1million per game played for the Stamford Bridge outfit. Ouch.
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