Journalist Dean Jones believes a £250,000-per-week star of Chelsea's squad "will end up at Real Madrid", on one crucial condition.
Chelsea players who could be sold to ease PSR worries
Chairman Todd Boehly and his co-sporting directors have a lot of crucial decisions to make very soon, with their end-of-season review also on the horizon and penciled in for next week.
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Manager Mauricio Pochettino, after a topsy-turvy debut campaign in the Stamford Bridge dugout, is also set to be assessed. Another important topic of conversation will be the players up for sale this summer, as concerns surround Chelsea's ability to comply with Profit and Sustainability rules.
Chelsea announced a £90.1 million loss in their latest of financial accounts for the 2022/2023 season, coming after two years of lavish spending by BlueCo. The club have invested over £1 billion on new signings alone since 2022, with PSR only allowing clubs to register a £105 million loss over a rolling three-year period.
Moises Caicedo
£115 million
Enzo Fernandez
£107 million
Mykhailo Mudryk
£88 million
Wesley Fofana
£72 million
Marc Cucurella
£58 million
Everton, Nottingham Forest and Leicester City have all been slapped with serious Premier League sanctions following their breaches of PSR, and Man City are currently battling 115 charges as frustrations mount around the league about FFP's position as a device to keep the traditional big clubs on top.
Reports suggest Chelsea have to raise £100 million through player sales by June 30, or face similar fates to the aforementioned sides. Conor Gallagher, Trevoh Chalobah and Raheem Sterling could leave Chelsea this summer to help bring in the required cash, while Boehly will also be eager to fully offload the plethora of senior players out on loan right now.
Romelu Lukaku is attracting interest from Saudi Arabia in that regard, and left-back Ian Maatsen could join Borussia Dortmund permanently after a brilliant campaign under Edin Terzic.
However, a player who supporters definitely won't want to see leave is right-back Reece James, despite his injury nightmare recently.
Reece James likely to leave Chelsea for Real Madrid on one condition
Speaking on the Ranks FC Ultras podcast this week, reporter Jones believes the £250,000-per-week England international is destined for La Liga – on one crucial condition.
Indeed, he says James "will end up at Real Madrid" if he can keep fit and rediscover his best Chelsea form, coming after the Galacticos have been eyeing him up for two or three years already.
“He’s made his comeback and he’s back in the team, but can we see the real Reece James for a long period of time? If we do then he will end up at Real Madrid," said Jones.
"Genuinely, they’ve wanted him for two or three years if he could become the man he could become, but he’s had setback after setback. He’s so good and if he starts the last game of the season then he’s fit for selection in Gareth Southgate’s eyes. I don’t know, I think there’s a huge temptation to take him.”