Chelsea club captain Cesar Azpilicueta. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
According to Sky Sports on Twitter, Chelsea have reached an agreement with Cesar Azpilicueta to extend his contract till the summer of 2023. The Spanish international has reached a minimum number of appearances required to trigger an automatic one-year extension on his current contract which was due to expire on 30th June 2022.
The 32-year-old has been one of our greatest servants in the last decade. He has now made 464 appearances across all competitions for the Blues to date, bagging 16 goals and 56 assists in the process. Azpilicueta has been a rock at the back and a dependable option in the absence of Reece James this season.
Even though the Spanish international may not possess the same kind of speed and energy going forward at 32, he has been a sturdy presence and his experience could be key in helping anchor the backline at Stamford Bridge. Predominantly a centre-back by trade, the Spaniard can also fill in at right-back should the need arise
The possibility of a defensive exodus seems more imminent with each passing day as Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen are being linked with a move away from the club at the end of the season. The duo have become a prominent part of the defensive setup under Thomas Tuchel and their departure could be a big loss for us that too on a free transfer.
In light of such developments, this news could be even more welcome and the Blues would feel like they’ve been provided with some form of respite. His experience at the elite level across England and Europe could help add that extra bit of rigidity and composure at the back.
While the club does possess another veteran in the form of Thiago Silva, at 37 one can’t help but wonder if the Brazilian will be able to fill in every week considering the packed schedule that the Blues face throughout the campaign. Trevoh Chalobah is also another youngster who has shown immense potential as a centre-back but asking him to fill in regularly for the first team could be a lot of pressure on his young shoulders at the moment.
Things slowly seem to be going our way as we head into the business end of the season. The 32-year-old Spaniard will possibly stay at the club for another season and we could learn the identity of our new owners by the end of April. We should now be looking forward to the post-Roman Abramovich era and what it has in store for us.
With clubs targeting the Spaniard as a free target previously, it would be interesting to see how this saga develops from here. The club faithful would be hoping that he can help us bag some more silverware before he finally decides to call it quits at Stamford Bridge.
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