After the departure of N’Golo Kanté, at the end of the contract, to Saudi Arabia, Chelsea should soon give up two new players, the British press announcing, on Wednesday, an agreement with Manchester City for Mateo Kovacic and Arsenal for Kai Havertz. After spending 600 million euros to bring in around 15 players in the last two transfer windows, the Blues will make their first significant sale with the Croatian midfielder for whom City are ready to pay around 35 million euros , bonus included, say British media.
Kovacic, who joined London in 2018 from Real Madrid, initially on loan and then permanently, had only one year left on his contract. He will become City’s first summer recruit after the league, FA and Champions League treble achieved last season. The announcement comes as usually well-informed Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano announced late this afternoon that City captain Ilkay Gündogan, out of contract in a few days, had signed a two-year contract with Barcelona.
The impoverished Chelsea midfielder
The departure of Kovacic, who has four C1s to his credit, three with Real and one with Chelsea, combined with that of Kanté to the Saudi club Al-Ittihad, impoverishes the Londoners’ midfield, a sector where they were not not so well endowed as that, contrary to their plethoric attack. However, it should lose one of its members soon, the German Kai Havertz having been authorized to discuss the terms of a contract with Arsenal after the two clubs in the capital reached an agreement for a transfer fee of 75 million. euros.
The 24-year-old, who has two years left on his contract, arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2020 for roughly the same price, and was quite irregular in his performance and above all clumsy in the finish. But he remains the one who offered the European title to the Blues in 2021, scoring the decisive goal (1-0) in the final against Manchester City.
Chelsea’s downsizing operation (which recently confirmed the arrival of Frenchman Christopher Nkunku, another attacking player) is far from over, however. Despite Romelo Lukaku’s refusal to join the Saudi Pro League, other departures to Saudi Arabia are possible, such as goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, Senegalese defender Kalidou Koulibaly, Moroccan midfielder Hakim Ziyech or Gabonese striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.