The future of one Chelsea player appears to be up in the air despite the fact he just helped them win the Club World Cup.
Chelsea have had an extremely busy summer so far, winning the 32-team Club World Cup tournament.
The Blues squad that was involved in the United States is off for three weeks to rest before next season. Meanwhile, several unwanted Chelsea players are training at Cobham as the club gets to work on trying to offload several individuals.
It’s been claimed that Blues head coach Enzo Maresca wants a maximum of 23 first-team players in his squad for next season, so we are guessing there will be a lot of business from now until the end of the summer at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea staff encouraged by Benoit Badiashile
Journalist Ben Jacobs has reported that Chelsea defender Benoit Badiashile, 24, has impressed staff at the club with his overall development as a player.
Speaking via Alex Goldberg’s Playback, Jacobs said: “There seems to be quite a bit of encouragement over the development of centre back Benoit Badiashile, even though the fanbase may not be so convinced.”
It was an up-and-down time last season for Badiashile, struggling to force his way into Chelsea’s best XI. Even so, he still managed to play 22 games across all competitions, starring in the Conference League campaign that the club ended up winning. Also, the left-footed centre-half played a couple of games this summer at the Club World Cup.
The reality is that Badiashile became the fourth-choice central defender at Chelsea last term behind Levi Colwill, Trevoh Chalobah and Tosin Adarabioyo. There is also injury-prone Wesley Fofana to throw back into the mix, too.
Benoit Badiashile could yet be sold by Chelsea
It is obvious that some conflicting reports are emerging about Badiashile and his future.
The Frenchman has been with the Blues since joining them from Monaco for £35m (BBC) two-and-a-half years ago. Will he still be playing for the club beyond the summer, though?
Badiashile claims he will remain with Chelsea and play for them next term because he’s part of Maresca’s plans.
Elsewhere, it’s been claimed that Chelsea are actively looking to sell Badiashile amid interest from Marseille.
If he’s content in his squad role as defensive cover, we like the idea of keeping the colossus star around. On his day, he can be a quality ball-playing centre-half with the profile to suit the team’s current style of play.
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