Will Chelsea resolve their centre-back crisis?

Cameron Smith

• Updated: 3 Jan 2022 18:31 GMT
• 4 min read

Simply put, Chelsea have a defensive crisis. At the turn of the year, they found themselves in an unusual position where four of their central defenders were out of contract in the same summer, and unfortunately for Thomas Tuchel, that summer is approaching fast.

Luckily for the Blues manager Thiago Silva has officially signed his contract extension at the club, keeping at Stamford Bridge for another 12 months.

The Brazilian was the most likely of Chelsea's defensive crop to sign an extension, and news broke of the deal on 3 January 2022.

Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen, and club captain Cesar Azpilicueta, however, will all be out of contract by the end of June, and hence will leave Chelsea for free.

Those three are able to start negotiating a pre-contract with European clubs now that it's January, and by the time the month is up, it may be confirmed that the Blues will lose all four in the summer.

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Now, that may seem unlikely, but it's possible, and if that does happen, it will leave Trevoh Chalobah, Malang Sarr, and, of course, Silva as Chelsea's only senior centre-backs.

It's why the Blues were desperate to sign Jules Kounde last summer, and why they're heavily looking at signing new central defensive talent.

Matthijs de Ligt, Presnel Kimpembe, Niklas Sule, the aforementioned Kounde, and many more are on Chelsea's radar, so they're preparing to lose at least one of their current crop.

But, how likely is it that Rudiger, Christensen, and Azpilicueta actually leave the club in the summer, and could they each sign a new deal?

Who will stay and who will go?

Transfer expert Gianluca Di Marzio revealed it was likely that two of the four will leave before Silva's extension was confirmed, while admitting that figure may rise to three if Chelsea don't up their offer.

Rudiger and Azpilicueta are reportedly the two who are set to leave Stamford Bridge in 2022, with Chelsea not willing to match their demands. Rudiger wants to become one of the highest paid players at the club, and one of the highest paid defenders in the world, but the Blues aren't willing to offer nearly £400,00 per week, which is the reported figure Real Madrid are prepared to give him.

Azpilicueta, the club captain, on the other hand, wants a two-year deal with an option for a third, while the club are only willing to hand him a one-year contract, which can be extended by a further year.

Chelsea typically only offer annual one-year deals to players over 30, and it seems to be a policy they're sticking with in regards to Azpilicueta.

While those two are on the verge of leaving, Christensen is at a stalemate. The Denmark international appeared set to put pen to paper on a new deal, but interest from Barcelona seems to have turned his head.

He's also changed his agent, and as a result, he's reportedly upped his demands, and this has put a halt in negotiations.

In Silva's case, however, it was a case of when, not if, he signed a new deal. The Brazilian accepted a one-year extension that will keep him at the club until he's 38.

While it's been confirmed that Silva will stay, Christensen is undecided, while Rudiger and Azpilicueta are ready to leave. With just three senior centre-backs, one of whom isn't fancied by Tuchel, Chelsea will need to agree deals for the other three, or delve heavily into the transfer market.