Italian giants still undecided if they want to retain January transfer interest in £35m Chelsea star

Fabrizio Romano has dismissed rumours of Chelsea plan to sell Benoit Badiashile

Fabrizio Romano confirms Chelsea have not made any decisions on selling Benoit Badiashile and will wait until the summer window, despite the former AS Monaco centre-back struggling to settle in the league.

The Frenchman has laboured to remain fit since joining the Blues, and his performance has also raised questions at the back. AC Milan are keen on acquiring the defender, but they have yet to make a decision on his signing, and it remains to be seen in the summer transfer window.

It’s possible to argue that his youth is another factor contributing to his persistent inconsistencies since signing with the Blues. Though Badiashile is a very talented player who has occasionally demonstrated that he can play at the Chelsea level, injuries have prevented him from reaching his full potential and getting enough minutes on the pitch, which has sparked rumours that the Blues might sell him.

However, Fabrizio Romano’s comments on Badiashile reveal, that the Blues are yet to decide on the 23-year-old future. Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his latest Daily Briefing column, he said:

“We’re again seeing reports of AC Milan targeting Chelsea defender Benoit Badiashile. AC Milan were interested in January, but there’s no decision yet on what they will do in the summer; it’s still early for AC Milan’s summer plans apart from the decision already made to bring in a new important striker. Also, Chelsea has not made any decisions on Badiashile so far. We have to wait until the summer for this; nothing is really happening now.”

It is evident that Badiashile has had difficulty performing this season, and this is primarily due to the fact that he has been sidelined with injuries frequently since joining the team. He has not been good this season, but the same people were saying this about Rudiger under Lampard when he just came back from a long-term injury. The next season, even before Tuchel came, he was already playing better. So, we need to be patient with him and let Badiashile develop.

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And if he stays injury-free, he will undoubtedly become one of our most important defensive players going forward. There have been moments when he has displayed his ability to perform like an experienced defender, but with recurring injuries, he hasn’t been able to maintain his form and had to start afresh. Once he starts avoiding injuries hopefully, he will then be able to realise his potential here.