Chelsea star not in Todd Boehly's plans, likely to leave amid links to Barcelona - Reports
Chelsea skipper Cesar Azpilicueta is reportedly set to leave Stamford Bridge next summer amid links to Barcelona.
As reported by Spanish outlet Sport, the Spanish full-back looks likely to be offloaded by the Blues in the summer as he is no longer in Todd Boehly's plans.
Chelsea have spent lavishly over the last couple of transfer windows after a consortium led by Todd Boehly took over at the club last year.
Despite their huge investment, however, the west London side have struggled on the pitch and find themselves in 11th place in the Premier League at the moment.
The report in Sport claimed that Boehly is looking to offload Blues skipper Azpilicueta this summer, with the Spaniard losing his prominence in the side.
The versatile defender has been a loyal servant to the London giants following his £7 million move from Marseille back in 2012.
He has made more than 500 appearances for the Blues to date, having contributed greatly to the club's success over the years. The Spain international has won a total of nine trophies during his time at Stamford Bridge, including one Champions League and two Premier League titles.
Azpilicueta was strongly linked with a move away from Chelsea last summer with Spanish giants Barcelona credited with an interest in the experienced defender.
However, the 33-year-old ended up signing a new deal at Stamford Bridge but has been sparsely used this campaign. The full-back has played just 1408 minutes of football for the Blues this season across competitions.
Sport claims that Barcelona have renewed interest in Apziliccueta as they seek reinforcements at right-back. It has also been claimed that Mateu Alemany and Jordi Cruyff were at Stamford Bridge last week to discuss a move for the defender.
Barcelona join Real Madrid in race to sign Chelsea defender
Barcelona have reportedly joined rivals Real Madrid in the hunt for Chelsea fullback Reece James in the summer.
As per Spanish journalist Gerard Romero on Twitch (via BarcaUniversal), the Blaugrana are keeping tabs on the England international, who has also been linked with a move to Real Madrid. He said:
“Keep an eye on Reece James. There are people at Barcelona who get instant emotions.”
Both Spanish clubs are understood to be keen on the Englishman, who is widely regarded as one of the best full-backs in the world right now.
Chelsea find themselves in a tricky situation right now and could need to offload several star players to avoid being hit by FFP sanctions.
James has scored twice and provided two assists in 24 games across competitions for the Blues this campaign.
The full-back has also missed a total of 18 games due to injuries this campaign, having missed 20 games last season as well.