Chelsea are looking to offload four stars before making a decision on signings: Romano

Transfer News: Four Chelsea players linked with exits as Jules Kounde, Saul Niguez decision yet to be made

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano (h/t football.london), Chelsea are looking to offload four players before they can make a decision on signing Jules Kounde and Saul Niguez.

Davide Zappacosta could seal a move to Fiorentina on loan with an option to buy next summer. The Italian right-back is clearly surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge given Reece James’ rise.

Tiemoue Bakayoko is also believed to be ‘one step away’ from re-joining AC Milan on loan. Malang Sarr, the 22-year-old centre-back, is wanted by Serie A side Bologna for a temporary spell.

And a decision on 22-year-old London-born striker, Ike Ugbo, is also expected to be taken soon. The quartet shouldn’t really be vital to Thomas Tuchel’s plans during this campaign.

Quartet headed for the exit doors?

All of them were on loan spells last season – Zappacosta was at Genoa, Bakayoko was playing for Napoli, Sarr was at Porto, and Ugbo played for Cercle Brugge.

Reece James and Cesar Azpilicueta are more than able to man the right side of the defence. The midfield trio of N’Golo Kante, Mateo Kovacic, and Jorginho is hard to displace in the pecking order.

Moreover, with the addition of Romelu Lukaku on top of Timo Werner’s presence, young Ugbo may have struggled for minutes. Sarr could have suffered a similar fate in defence.

The club already has a settled backline with names like Andreas Christensen, Antonio Rudiger, and Thiago Silva. With the recent rise of Trevoh Chalobah in Tuchel’s pecking order, Sarr is better off seeking game-time elsewhere before he can displace one of Chelsea’s first-choice defenders in the near future.

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea will be without Christian Pulisic for the London Derby on Sunday
• Transfer News: Alaves complete agreement with Chelsea over Matt Miazga loan
• Chelsea could sign Saul Niguez before the end of the month

If the Blues then manage to sign talent such as Saul and Jules Kounde after offloading the aforementioned players, then it would be hard to find a Chelsea fan who is disappointed with the board’s decision.