Already this season Chelsea have seen a central midfielder leave the club for a Premier League rival. Jorginho ultimately left the club in a deal that worked for all parties when he joined Arsenal.
The Italian earned the Blues a £12million package by moving six months before his contract expired while ensuring he has a role to play in a team competing for the Premier League title, while the Gunners got an 18-month addition to shore up their depth.
Chelsea are set to be faced with a number of similar decisions moving forward as the club look to stop their stars from entering the final two years of their contracts. Already the Blues have fallen victim to losing Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, while N'Golo Kante and Thiago Silva entered the final year of their deals this season, as well as Jorginho.
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Silva, who has been ruled out of Chelsea's upcoming matches with a knee injury, extended his stay at Stamford Bridge and there remains a chance that N'Golo Kante does too but with a squad in excess of 30 it is likely players will depart when in similar circumstances in the summer.
The likes of Mason Mount, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Cesar Azpilicueta, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Christian Pulisic, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Mateo Kovacic are all due to see their contracts expire in 2024. Reports suggest the latter is already drawing interest from Manchester City.
The Croatian star has been managing an injury issue for much of the season and been in and out of the team as a result. The 28-year-old suffered a knee injury during pre-season that hampered his preparation and he has played 1,419 minutes for the Blues this term - 800 fewer than Silva.
At his best, his influence can be spectacular. He was one of few who found some connection with Romelu Lukaku during 2021/22 and before an injury was possible Chelsea's most impressive players in the early stages of the campaign.
However, while he has mostly been rotated in and out of the team with Jorgingho and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, he has rarely formed a partnership that looks competitive in all areas of midfield, perhaps missing the presence of N'Golo Kante.
Kovacic has been a good player for Chelsea, even winning the player of the season award in 2019/20 but at the start of a new project, a consideration must be made whether extending his stay is the correct one. A new deal would see him into his early 30s, and the Blues have already added Enzo Fernandez and retain an interest in Declan Rice ahead of the summer transfer window.
Whether Chelsea would see the benefit in offering Kovacic a package that he would deem worthy of his services remains to be seen. Whether the former Real Madrid midfielder wants to extend his stay in London will be another question to wrangle with too.
Many may argue that Manchester City have an interest, as the reigning Premier League champions, that Chelsea should probably think twice before sanctioning his departure. When it could be a club that Chelsea hope to see as rivals, even more consideration is needed.
Whether the club could find a deal that serves all parties, like that of Jorginho is worth consideration too, however. The Premier League has by far the greatest spending power and can not be ignored when Chelsea are in a position where they need to offload players.
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