There has certainly been plenty of speculation linking Florent Malouda with a move out of Chelsea over the past few months although after the passing of transfer deadline day, some people thought that the French winger might have a future at Stamford Bridge. However, Roberto Di Matteo has given the biggest sign yet that the forward won’t be with the Blues for much longer, after leaving him out of the 25-man squad that the club had to submit to UEFA for the Champions League group stages.

Malouda arrived at the Blues back in 2007, in a deal worth a reported £13m from Lyon. At the time, he was a key member of Jose Mourinho’s squad although over recent times he has found opportunities more difficult to come by and it was widely thought that he would move on during the summer. Moreover, with the player having just one year remaining on his current contract, supporters were adamant that they had seen the last of him as the club tried to earn a final transfer fee.

It’s thought that Malouda came very close to sealing a move to Santos several months ago, with the Blues going as far as agreeing a transfer fee with the Brazilian outfit. However, after the 32-year-old failed to agree terms, the transfer promptly collapsed and left everyone in limbo.

Should Malouda manage to complete a move away from the Bridge anytime soon, he would become the third midfielder in recent days to leave the club. Having also struggled for first team action over recent times, Di Matteo allowed the popular Michael Essien to move on loan to Real Madrid on Friday. That wasn’t the only piece of business though, with Raul Meireles leaving for Fenerbahce on Monday – just one season after the player signed from Liverpool.