‘End of an era’ – Three BIG Chelsea players leaving as Romano announces FAST deals

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 19 Jun 2023 13:48 BST
• 3 min read

Chelsea are set to lose a trio of players to the Saudi Pro League, according to Fabrizio Romano, who says these moves could be completed quickly.

Shedding excess players is key to the Blues summer transfer window as it opens the door to potential new signings and also will mean that new manager Mauricio Pochettino has a more workable squad to coach.

According to Romano, at least three deals are in good voice, with N’Golo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly and Hakim Ziyech all closing in on moves to the Saudi Pro League with three different clubs.

MORE: Chelsea 'expected to bid' for third player after Caicedo and Jackson

Kante’s move appears to be the most advanced, with Romano given details of the contract that the 2022 World Cup winner is set to earn with Al-Ittihad, where he will team up with Karim Benzema.

The transfer specialist reports that the veteran midfielder has signed a four-year deal with the club worth €100 million, with image rights and commercial deals offering him the opportunity to earn additional money.

Romano reports that this move is “finally set to be announced” and that this is the “end of an era” for Kante and Chelsea.

MORE: Cristiano Ronaldo to be joined at Al-Nassr by Premier League star

On top of this, there is clear progress in a deal for Koulibaly, who only moved to Chelsea last summer for €38 million from Napoli. He is set to sign a three-year contract with the Al-Hilal club that missed out on Lionel Messi, although there are still details to be finalised in this case.

Romano states that in the case of both Koulibaly and Ziyech, who will join Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr the “deals are advancing well and fast”.

Boehly rewarded for his work

Chelsea owner Todd Boehly has recently been in Saudi Arabia to talk business to the Pro League. His idea was to use the big-spending emerging competition as an outlet for the club to lose some of its ailing starts.

With Kante, Koulibaly and Ziyech – all peripheral players for Chelsea last season – leaving for Saudi Arabia, the American’s task has successfully been accomplished.