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Two Chelsea players who could head through the exit door this summer

Chelsea have been in a season of transition under manager Frank Lampard after parting ways with Eden Hazard, who was their main talisman in the attack.

The Blues could not spend last summer due to the FIFA-imposed transfer ban but new boss Lampard was still able to introduce young academy players, who had impressed on loan deals away from the club.

The west London side have since experienced a mixed bag of performances on the playing field but they are still in a good position to qualify for the Champions League next term.

The club’s hierarchy made the surprise decision to not spend on new players after the transfer embargo was lifted in January but Lampard’s side are still placed fourth in the standings with a three-point advantage over Manchester United behind them.

The season is currently suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic and there is the optimism that the campaign could resume by the beginning of June, as per The Mail.

Regardless of the final outcome, the Blues will want to strengthen the squad ahead of next season and we look into a couple of players, who could be shown the exit door.

Michy Batshuayi: Batshuayi was initially fancied to challenge for the striker’s role this season with the limited competition from Olivier Giroud and Tammy Abraham, who had yet to prove himself in the top-flight. However, he has barely featured in the Premier League and has been restricted to just one start. The Belgian has fared impressively in the Cup competitions with five goals from eight appearances but that has been a recurring trend during the course of his Blues career. Batshuayi has been with the club since the summer of 2016 but he has failed to convince one of Antonio Conte, Maurizio Sarri or Lampard that he can feature as the main striker in the league. Batshuayi has been guilty of missing some clear-cut chances on goal but that could be more of a confidence issue rather than a lack of quality. Perhaps, it’s time for him to move on permanently.

Emerson: The Italy international started the season as the first-choice left-back ahead of Marcos Alonso and he played through the entire 90 minutes during the opening four games. However, he thereafter sustained a hamstring injury and has not looked the same player ever since. Emerson has struggled for playing time in the second half of the season and prior to the coronavirus shutdown, he did not take any part in seven successive games – out of which he failed to make the matchday squad on five occasions. During this period, Cesar Azpilicueta and Alonso were preferred ahead of him and the latter, in particular, impressed from the left wing-back position with three goals from five outings. The club are likely to pursue another high-profile player for the left-back/left wing-back role this summer and Emerson will surely seek an exit rather than dropping further down the pecking order.

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