Former Chelsea star rubbishes the speculated reason behind his departure this summer

Gallagher rubbishes claims that Chelsea exit came due to tactical barriers

Conor Gallagher departed Chelsea for Atletico Madrid during the transfer window as he brought the curtains down on his career with the Blues that spanned over 18 years across various ranks on their books. The 24-year-old is already settling into La Liga by emerging as a key part of Diego Simeone’s squad.

However, claims have arisen of late that his departure from Stamford Bridge came due to tactical barriers such as not being suited to a brand of football that was based around possession, identical to the one Enzo Maresca prefers. He has refuted such claims while on international duty with England and was quoted saying the following by The Guardian:

“I don’t think that’s true. Last season I had a good season with Chelsea and you could see by Pochettino playing me every game and showing his trust in me. The fans appreciated what I did on the pitch. I’m very grateful for all of that and very thankful to the fans, and very thankful to Pochettino for giving me that platform to go and express myself and show the best version of myself at Chelsea.”

Indeed, it is hard to believe speculation that Gallagher’s Chelsea departure came as a result of him being considered a misfit in Maresca’s tactical system. Rumours swirling around his departure had started even before the former Manchester City assistant took over the role in west London after Mauricio Pochettino was fired.

Gallagher was essentially frozen out by Chelsea as they hoped to sell him to alleviate the financial pressure that was upon them due to the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules. Given that he was an academy graduate, his sale has shown an absolute profit in the club’s accounting and therefore, the board’s intent was to use him as a cash cow to balance their books.

In either case, the player will always have a special place in the hearts of Chelsea’s fans and like several of England’s players who leave the country to pursue opportunities abroad, Gallagher could also reconsider the prospect of returning to his homeland some time down the line and the Blues would definitely entertain thoughts of his comeback in the future.

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For now though, Chelsea and Gallagher is an association of the past.