A £50 million Chelsea player is said to be eyeing a move to Saudi Arabia amid Enzo Maresca's arrival at the club, with the Italian's appointment confirmed on Monday.
Maresca announced as new Chelsea head coach this week
A new era at Stamford Bridge has officially begun, as Maresca puts pen to paper on a five-year deal with the option of a further 12 months.
Enzo Maresca excited to work with £60,000-per-week Chelsea ace, really rates him
The Blues officially announced Maresca’s arrival on Monday.
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Pretty much immediately after securing Premier League promotion with Leicester City, and winning the Championship title last season, Maresca has made the switch to west London as he makes plans behind the scenes.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Maresca cannot wait to work with Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez as one squad member he really rates. There have been other reports that Maresca plans to make Cole Palmer the focal point of his Chelsea side as well, and the ex-Parma boss is also very much looking forward to working with Chelsea's younger crop of players.
Cole Palmer
7.48
Conor Gallagher
7.13
Nicolas Jackson
7.07
Moises Caicedo
6.85
Noni Madueke
6.84
“Maresca believes in the Chelsea project around young players with a big future, he thinks it is a really exciting project," said reliable journalist Romano to CaughtOffside on why Maresca joined Chelsea.
"Meanwhile, Chelsea are convinced he’s a super talented coach and that’s why he’s a name appreciated by both directors and owners, all convinced he can be the man for present and future. Maresca’s obsession with ball possession, quality football, dominating the game, his knowledge of elite football despite being a young manager – all of this made the difference for Chelsea to pick him.”
While certain squad members are set to hugely benefit after Maresca's switch to Stamford Bridge, the same cannot be said for some players. Chelsea are set to try and sell Romelu Lukaku for around £38 million, while Sky Sports journalist Dharmesh Sheth writes that Borussia Dortmund are in talks to sign Ian Maatsen on a permanent deal.
Another player who could be sold under Maresca is striker Armando Broja, who was valued at around £50 million earlier this year.
After a poor loan spell at Fulham, clubs could be unlikely to pay a figure close to that amount, with journalist Ben Jacobs sharing an update on his future for GiveMeSport.
Broja open to leaving Chelsea for Saudi side
He writes that Broja is open to leaving Chelsea for Saudi Arabia this summer, but clubs in the Middle East are only likely to pay up to £20 million for him – under half of what Chelsea valued him a few months ago.
The Albania international's sale would count as pure profit in the eyes of PSR, considering he came through the Cobham academy, and it's perhaps more important to just get him off the books to raise funds.
Broja did enjoy a fantastic loan spell at Southampton a couple of seasons ago, with Saints legend Francis Benali calling him a "sensational" player.