John Terry played his final game for Chelsea on May 21 of 2017 as he performed for his club in their match against Sunderland which concluded with the team of Antonio Conte claiming a 5-1 triumph.
The 36 year old English defender made a speech about his time spent in Stamford Bridge as he made over 700 appearances with more than 15 years of playing time at the English Premier League club but his time has finally reached it’s end.
“One of the most difficult days of my life. Thank you will never, ever be enough, but I’ll tell you what: I’ll be back here one day. I’m going to be supporting the players and the club from the bottom of my heart. You’ve given me everything from the age of 17 when I first started out. You picked me up when I was down, sung my name when I’ve had bad days and disappointed you as well.” Continue reading →
Chelsea have signed German defender Antonio Rudiger, according to reports. The Guardian reports that the player would have his medical at Stamford Bridge next week as the club announces the joining of former Manchester City keeper Willy Caballero, and possibly Alex Sandro.
Chelsea have offered Serie A giant AS Roma over £33 million for the defender – Roma wanted up to €45 million but Chelsea’s €38 million bid pulled through. The Premier League champs had started with €35 million before they increased their bid price. Chelsea will pay Roma an initial €33 million while adding €5 million in bonuses.
Rudiger can play in central defence and double in right back role. He is expected to earn €4 million in annual wages. The player was impressive for the young German side that shocked Chile in the FIFA Confederations Cup final in Russia. Germany had been the underdogs on https://sport.netbet.co.uk/football/, but managed to prevail 1-0.
Coach Antonio Conte has been on the lookout for defensive minded stars since the departure of some faces. The former Juventus manager identified the 24-year old as a worthy replacement after Branislav Ivanovic, John Terry and Nathan Ake left. Bournemouth paid £20 million for Ake and £10m for Asmir Begovic.
Chelsea have already signed 35-year old Argentina international Willy Caballero on a free transfer deal after City released him. The deal was said to have been done but the club only just announced its completion. He is expected to provide cover for first choice Thibaut Courtois.
There have also been reports that the Premier League champs have agreed a deal to sign left back Alex Sandro from Juventus. However, the deal for the player is yet to be complete. Sky Sports confirm that the Blues are holding talks with the Serie A champs in a purported mega-money move.
Sandro would not left off easily after his impressive run under Coach Massimiliano Allegri last term. He helped the club to a record Serie A title win and a Champions League final place against Real Madrid. Chelsea face competition from French side Paris St Germain if the Old Lady agrees to trade.
The Brazilian could cost up to £61 million which is very high for a defender even in modern day football. Juventus have offered him a new contract as they want the player to remain. It seems the interest of the player would weigh in heavily on the next steps of his career with all the options before him. Chelsea could offer him better wages and offer regular football but the competition can offer sometime similar as well. He has been developing steadily since exiting Porto in 2015.
As Chelsea negotiate for Sandro’s addition, the club could lose Loic Remy. The player reportedly agreed terms with Turkish side Besiktas for a four year deal. The 30-year old player is desperate for regular football after failing to make his mark at Stamford Bridge following a move from QPR in 2014.
The France international has entered the final year of his contract at the club. With Coach Antonio Conte deeming him surplus to requirements, Besiktas offered him a lifeline. emy was on loan at Crystal Palce but fitness issues affected him. The deal is reported to be below £2 million as the Turkish side want replacement for Demba Ba and Vincent Aboubakar.
Chelsea are reportedly stalling on their potential approach for James Rodriguez after knowing of Real Madrid’s £70m asking price for the Colombia international.
The South American attacker has been constantly linked with a Premier League move after he was found applying for a UK working visa earlier in the January transfer window. Rodriguez eventually opted to stay put at the Bernabeu under the advice of agent Jorge Mendes with a view to resolving his future in the summer.
Rodriguez was partially used by Zidane Zinedine during the course of the previous campaign with most of his goals coming off the substitutes’ bench. The most surprise decision of them all was his surprise exclusion from the Champions League final squad despite training with the squad prior to the showpiece event against Juventus. Los Blancos eventually won the premier competition to become the first side ever to retain the title in the modern era. Continue reading →
Last season’s abysmal display by The Blues that saw them finish tenth helped fuel rumours of their top striker, Diego Costa wanting out. Luckily for Chelsea, Conte’s appointment bought enough time to convince the 28-year old that he could have his entire dream come through right there at the Stamford Bridge.
The first half of the season saw Chelsea run rampant, winning 11 games on the bounce and opening a huge gap between them and the rest of the league. Costa was at the heart of such run of form, discovering the scoring instincts that went blunt last season. The Spaniard scored 20 goals in the Premier League by January and even if that might look meagre by his standards, he very much made up for what he lack in goals by being at his nuisance best, tirelessly provoking opposition defenders in a bid to get them walked up and bag a red card. Continue reading →
Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata has reportedly turned down a move to the Chinese Super League his summer.
The star was offered a mega deal worth £147 million to move Far East but he turned it down without batting any eyelid, preferring the competitive European football.
Marca reports that the player would have earned almost £30 million in annual wages for five years had he agreed to the deal. The player is an interest of Premier League giants Chelsea. Coach Antonio Conte managed him while he was on loan at Juventus and they could reunite at Stamford Bridge after this season.
Morata has netted 20 times in all competitions this term, despite Coach Zinedine Zidane favouring Karim Benzema in the pecking order. If the Spaniard stays at Madrid, he could get to take over from Benzema but he would get fewer chances before then. At the Bernabeu, he is assured titles too while leaving Spain might be a gamble.
With the future of Blues striker Diego Costa not certain, and with Chelsea set to play more competitions, the club requires a top striker. Morata has the youth and experience and he would be a good fit but for now no definite decisions seem to have been made. Continue reading →
Cesc Fabregas has denied suggestions that he is looking for a move away from Chelsea.
He has categorically deny these rumours and says that he is only focused on the blues. Since coming to Chelsea in the summer of 2014, the midfielder has been an immense part of the squad. He was a major factor behind of the club winning the league title in the 2014-15 season. Even though he has not been a regular starter this season, largely due to the lack of Champions League football, Fabregas has played a crucial role in Chelsea remaining top of the table for much of the campaign.
The blues midfielder, though, has been linked with the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool in the last couple of weeks. Both clubs are ready to make an offer of around £25 million for the 30-year-old. Chelsea would not be in the mood to lose him, as it is extremely difficult to replace a player like Fabregas. Continue reading →
Antonio Conte has confirmed that John Terry may not play much in the remainder of the campaign.
The Chelsea defender recently announced his exit from the club at the end of the season. This comes as a major news considering that Terry has been at the club for over two decades. He has also been the captain of Chelsea since 2004. It has always been difficult to replace a player like Terry in all these years, but age has been catching up with the former England captain in the last few years. He has played very little football in this current campaign. There appears no room for sentiment as Conte is not prepared to give the player a Wembley send-off by giving him a starting line-up position against Tottenham this weekend.
Chelsea take on Tottenham in the FA Cup semifinals. Gary Cahill is unavailable for the game due to a minor injury problem. The club are also coming on the back of a poor run of form which has seen them suffer two defeats – against Crystal Palace and Manchester United – in the last three matches. Continue reading →
Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma says that manager Antonio Conte is a perfectionist when it comes to preparing the team for the games.
Conte has managed to transform the fortunes of Chelsea from a team that struggled to even qualify for the Europa League last season into title contenders once again. A 10 point advantage at the top of the table sees the team classified as favourites to win the league title for a second time in three seasons. One of the reasons for this excellent form in the campaign appears to be the meticulous preparation taken up by the manager.
Zouma spend a significant chunk of the campaign on the sidelines, but he recently returned to first team action. Even though he has been unable to establish itself in the starting lineup, Zouma remains an integral part of the squad. Continue reading →
Chelsea have been given the permission to build a £500 million 60,000-seat stadium by the mayor of London, according to reports.
This means the club can demolish or rework the current state of the stadium to increase the capacity from the current 41,600 to 60,000.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council approved the plans earlier in the year but the mayor – who makes the final decision – has given the go-ahead.
“Having taken a balanced view of the application, I’m satisfied this is a high-quality and spectacular design which will significantly increase capacity within the existing site, as well as ensuring fans can have easy access from nearby transport connections.
“I’m confident this new stadium will be a jewel in London’s sporting crown and will attract visitors and football fans from around the world,” the mayor Sadiq Khan said.
The Premier League side was elated at the permission to proceed. Continue reading →
Antonio Conte says that he is disappointed to see the referee Mark Clattenburg leave the Premier league.
One of the best referees in England, Clattenburg has been given the opportunity to take charge of some of the biggest games like the English FA Cup final. He was regarded as the next big thing in English football refereeing aside from Howard Webb, who retired from refereeing a few years ago. Clattenburg was recently rumoured to be considering offers from China and Saudi Arabia. These were far more lucrative than the £ 100,000 per year contract he currently receives as the Premier League referee.
In addition to this contract, Clattenburg is understood to be receiving around £5,000 per match. Now, the referee will be receiving a whopping £ 500,000 per year. More importantly, this will be money that does not attract any taxes since Saudi Arabia is a tax haven. It is also understood that China offered him around £ 1 million per year in order to be the head of refereeing. Continue reading →
