Chelsea might have just revealed whether or not Levi Colwill will leave this summer after a fresh amendment was made to the club website. The 20-year-old defender has been heavily linked with an exit from Stamford Bridge following his impressive performances while on loan at Brighton.
Colwill, who sees his contract with the Blues expire in 2025, featured 17 times for the Seagulls in the Premier League last season, helping Roberto De Zerbi's side keep five clean sheets. The England Under-21 international guided Brighton to a Europa League qualification spot ahead of Tottenham and, his parent club, Chelsea.
football.london understands that the west Londoners have been very impressed with his progress and he's expected to be a key player under Mauricio Pochettino – so, therefore, he's not for sale. Although Chelsea may find it difficult to hold onto Colwill after De Zerbi publicly revealed his intent to re-sign him.
Despite the Italian's hopes of securing the Englishman on a permanent basis, the Blues seem to have put any speculation of an exit to bed. Colwill have just been added to the first-team squad roster on the club website, suggesting that he'll remain at Stamford Bridge this summer.
His personalised profile also hints at where Pochettino plans to play him next season, which reads: "An England youth international who plays mostly at centre-back, he can also slot in on the left as a full-back or wing-back, and enjoys stepping forward as a ball-playing defender."
However, Chelsea fans mustn't get their hopes up too quickly because Ethan Ampadu, Malo Gusto, Baba Rahman, Malang Sarr, Tino Anjorin, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Romelu Lukaku have also been added to the roster. While one or two are expected to be included in Pochettino's plans next term, the remainder will likely be dished out on loan or sold.
Nevertheless, Colwill's addition to the official roster is certainly a step in the right direction as Chelsea look to fend off interest from Brighton this summer. If – for whatever reason – the Blues were unsure what to do with the defender, Rio Ferdinand has insisted that he's already better than Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile.
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Speaking on the FIVE YouTube channel, the former Manchester United captain said: "I think Levi Colwill is the best one they have got at Chelsea. He’s better than Wesley Fofana and I think he’s better than Benoit Badiashile.
"Have you seen the way Levi Colwill is playing for Brighton? He has gone to Brighton, his team is higher than Chelsea. He is playing unbelievably well in that team.
"Did you see the way Levi Colwill was slapping that ball around [against Arsenal]? This season, he has been better than Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile, 100%."
