
Chelsea
Premier League • England
Chelsea flop offered exit route by Champions League giant with January exit likely

It’s fair to say that Hakim Ziyech’s move to Chelsea hasn’t gone to plan and he could be offered a surprise exit route in January.
The Moroccan international signed for Chelsea in 2020 for a fee of around £38million. Since his move from Ajax, he has struggled to find consistency and a spot in the starting 11.
This season for example he has only started in one Premier League match and has played 148 minutes in total.
The 29-year-old has shown flashes of quality, but he has not made a large enough impression to warrant a regular starting spot.
Last season he made just 14 Premier League starts and scored four league goals in that time. Ziyech is best utilised on a free role on the right-hand side where he can cut onto his left foot.
Since moving from Ajax his creative numbers have dropped significantly, perhaps as a result of his game time.
There’s no doubt that Ziyech is a very talented player, but perhaps Chelsea was not the right environment for him to thrive in.
AC Milan offer exit route
Italian champions AC Milan reportedly have Ziyech on their radar ahead of the January transfer window.
According to a report from Italian outlet Sport Mediaset, Milan will make money available to reinvest into their squad in the January window.
The report claims that the playmaker ‘can’t wait to leave Chelsea’ as a result of his limited game time. It is also claimed that ‘his legal representative, the lawyer Sebastien Ledure, has already had the opportunity to speak with [Paolo] Maldini’ ahead of a potential move.
Milan currently sit second in Serie A, eight points away from leaders Napoli. They are keen to improve on their attacking options and Ziyech could be the solution they seek.
The Chelsea star has been on their radar for quite some time now it would seem.
Chelsea exit is no surprise
Given the new direction Chelsea are heading under Graham Potter, a January exit for Ziyech would come as no surprise.
He hasn’t featured much under the new manager and Chelsea will be keen on recouping some of the money they originally spent on him.
Chelsea themselves are in a tricky situation and run the risk of not qualifying for the Champions League next season.
The addition of Christopher Nkunku next summer should add more firepower to the squad, but they are in need of a quick-fix this season.
Potter’s side have been on a poor run of form leading up to the international break. They currently find themselves eighth in the table, having lost their last three matches.
The biggest problem Chelsea have faced has been finding back of the net. They have only scored 17 league goals this season, which is the lowest of any top half side.
Kai Havertz and Raheem Sterling are Chelsea’s top scorers as things stand with just three league goals each.
If Chelsea continue to average 1.2 goals per game, they will finish the season on a mere 46 goals which would be a huge underperformance.
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