Thomas Tuchel has explained Chelsea need to avoid the mistake of allowing N’Golo Kante and Jorginho to enter the final year of their contracts without knowing their future.
The Blues find themselves in a sticky situation regarding player contracts, something further complicated by the sanctions imposed on the club that bans transfer activity and extending deals to current players.
Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, both of whom are out of contract this summer, have been allowed to reach the final year on their deals.
Barcelona have reportedly agreed to sign defender Christensen already for next season on a free transfer. Meanwhile, centre-back Rudiger is leaving this summer unless a new deal is sorted at Stamford Bridge.
Tuchel was asked in yesterday’s press conference about the futures of midfield duo Kante and Jorginho. The pair are both contracted to the club until 2023, so there’s a chance history could repeat itself with key players entering the final year of their contract. Chelsea’s manager has stressed he’s keen to avoid that again, though.
“Nobody wants that with players, especially nowadays with big and important players. As a coach it is important that we solve this in the summer, so that it is clear where the journey is,” Tuchel said.
“We would have the same talks as we have had Toni and Andreas. We will talk about it through the winter and January. It would be nice to avoid this but, in the moment, it is difficult to handle anything. But yes, of course, this should be the target for all of us.”
Midfield plan at Chelsea
Tuchel’s spot on that Chelsea need to know if Kante and Jorginho plan on sticking around for the next two to three years.
If not, serious planning will need to be done to replace two top-class central midfielders.
A lot of people suggest Blues loanee Conor Gallagher could be a long-term answer in Chelsea’s midfield, so giving him next season to shadow Kante in a box-to-box role could be great for his development.
Meanwhile, Tuchel would surely need to be granted a big transfer fund to find a like-for-like replacement for Jorginho.
Of course, transfer talk will depend on the new ownership.
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