Mateo Kovacic reveals Chelsea exit is LIKELY amid Man City interest

James Shearman

• Updated: 8 Jun 2023 18:23 BST
• 3 min read

Mateo Kovacic has revealed that he is likely to leave Chelsea in the summer transfer window.

Kovacic had been an important player for the Blues in recent seasons but experienced a poor 2022-23 campaign.

He is now expected to leave the west London club, with new manager Mauricio Pochettino said to be okay with his departure.

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"I have one more year with Chelsea, this season was very bad," Kovacic told Nacional.

"Everything is going towards the fact that after 5 good years I will change, but in football anything can happen. Right now, I’m focused on Croatia and the Nations League."

The 29-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Pep Guardiola's Manchester City.

City, who play Inter Milan in Saturday's Champions League final, could be looking for a replacement for Ilkay Gundogan.

"Manchester City is a top team and deserves to be in the Champions League final," Kovacic added. "That’s what I have to say. The summer is long, we’ll see what happens."

Kovacic to Man City?

Chelsea have typically sold players to Premier League rivals at the right time.

Nemanja Matic to Man Utd, David Luiz and Jorginho to Arsenal are prime examples of the Blues letting go of players that were on the decline.

But the same can't be said for 29-year-old Kovacic should he leave in the summer window.

The Croat was excellent under former managers Frank Lampard and Thomas Tuchel prior to this season.

Some would suggest that he is no longer the same player after a poor campaign but it is far more likely that he just had an off year - Guardiola certainly thinks so.

And selling Kovacic would mean having to spend a fortune on an adequate replacement, as well as the two midfielders that the Blues already plan to bring in.