With the transfer window open, uncertain reins over a number of Chelsea players' futures. The Blues are set for a busy summer and need to trim down their squad to mould a more manageable group for Mauricio Pochettino's arrival.
The likes of Mateo Kovacic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Conor Gallagher and N'Golo Kante could all depart from Chelsea's midfield with the latter reaching the end of his contract with the Blues. There is no shortage of players further up the pitch who could also depart the club in the shape of Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and even in goal there is potential of a farewell from Edouard Mendy or Kepa Arrizabalaga. That is before even getting to the yearly formation of the loan army.
At the end of his lap of honour on the final day of the season, Kante said 'we'll see' when asked if he would still be at Stamford Bridge after the summer. While his future appears to be trending in one direction, there is still no definitive confirmation that the Frenchman has cleared out his locker ready to make the journey elsewhere.
Chelsea did provide clarification on a number of futures on Friday afternoon. The club confirmed the release of 13 players whose contracts had come to an end, including Tiemoue Bakayoko whose loan with AC Milan had come to an end.
That list included Dujon Sterling whose transfer to Rangers has long since been confirmed. That perhaps goes to suggest if any move for Kante had been completed in its entirety he would be listed among Chelsea's released players.
Instead, he was listed as having been offered a contract and grouped in with Chelsea's retained squad. For a long time, the veteran midfielder was expected to extend his deal with the club after a frustrating final year out injured.
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That does not appear to be the case at the moment and Chelsea are keen to add to their midfield with the likes of Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia drawing the interest of the Blues. Kante's departure seems somewhat inevitable albeit not yet signed off.
The 32-year-old is not the only player in a purgatory of sorts with Malik Mothersille and Tudor Mendel-Idowu being represented in the same way. With contracts not accepted, it appears the duo may be more likely to leave Cobham for pastures new, with the latter player said to be considering his education as part of his future despite being an exciting prospect.
In the same release 12 months ago, Ethan Wady and Xavier Simons were listed as being offered contracts and did remain with the club. However, Wady is on the released list on this occasion while Simons completed a transfer to Hull City earlier in the year after being loaned to the club.
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