Chelsea are not just set to receive a big influx of cash this summer as they seek to sell players and balance the books somewhat after an unprecedented march through the transfer window. With £600million worth of deals in the last 12 months and two windows alone, pressure had been growing.
There was also the demand to cut down on a massively bloated squad that had reached 33 players at one point. The January additions of eight players only added more issues to the mounting pile. Now, they look to have made rapid moves to creating a different landscape for the new campaign.
As Mauricio Pochettino prepares to embark on his new challenge, five players are already close to transfers away and another has been confirmed as leaving at the end of his contract.
Mateo Kovacic is set for a move to Manchester City whilst Kai Havertz edges towards Arsenal. Kalidou Koulibaly, Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy are all departing to become the latest in a line of big named Saudi Pro League recruits. N'Golo Kante will join them after leaving for free.
Mix these exits with the already confirmed decision not to negotiation with Atletico Madrid for a permanent move for Joao Felix and the bypassing the £26million option to buy at the end of Denis Zakaria's loan spell and that is eight players down. Mason Mount is the subject of intense interest from Manchester United but still needs to agree a fee for his sale before that can be considered a done deal.
With the five players that are expected to bring in transfers fees there is likely to be around £150million coming in. Mount would take that above the £200million mark and a start on bringing the gap down from the lavish summer of 2022 and January 2023 windows.
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However, more than just the transfer fee and squad slot, Chelsea are set to cut down on nearly 20% of their wage spending when these sales are completed. The players previously mentioned, not including Mount just yet, cost Chelsea approximately £55.9million per year.
When taking into account the total to run on their contracts it is an even bigger saving: Kovacic (one year), Havertz (two years) Koulibaly (three years), Mendy (two years), Ziyech (one year). This, alongside the money paid to keep Kante, Felix and Zakaria for just one extra season, is a massive £102.8million.
This not only clears that up for now but it also allows it to be reinvested in new, more appropriate purchases and helps to start implementing the fresh wage structure based around incentives that the new owners are keen to apply.
Who should Chelsea keep or sell this summer...?
