Chelsea to OFFLOAD big-money flop after ONE season

Tom Weber

• Updated: 1 Jun 2023 21:04 BST
• 3 min read

Chelsea are already trying to offload Kalidou Koulibaly after just one season, according to a report.

The defender arrived as part of Todd Boehly's massive spending spree that saw Chelsea lavish €600 million on new players across two transfer windows. Unfortunately for Koulibaly, he came to typify the misjudged nature of this transfer approach and he has, unsurprisingly, failed to live up to his price tag.

The Blues paid Napoli €38 million for his services (and gave him a four-year-deal!) despite him being on the wrong side of 30, while the Italians signed Kim Min-jae as his replacement for just €18.1m, and they have ended up with a better player. The Senegalese has struggled to have any kind of positive impact at Stamford Bridge and has often been merely a peripheral figure.

READ: Chelsea to lose ANOTHER star to Serie A after Abraham & Tomori

He is, however, on massive wages, so Chelsea can ill-afford to just have him sit on the bench. Plus, their uncoordinated recruitment has left them with several options in central defence. Therefore, they already appear prepared to cut their losses.

Huge wages, few takers

According to the Evening Standard, the Blues have decided that offloading Koulibaly is the best way forward, though this will likely prove easier said than done.

The soon-to-be 32-year-old is understood to want to stay since it is improbable that he will get another €230,000-per-week deal anywhere else in Europe at this stage in his career. Moreover, his contract runs for another three years which means that buying him out of his deal won't be cheap.

This makes finding suitors exceptionally difficult unless Chelsea are willing to let him leave for a paltry fee. With Levi Colwill coming back from his Brighton loan, the Blues may have to make a definitive decision soon.

READ: Sign him up Poch! Tammy Abraham put up for sale by Roma

They want to tie the sought-after youngster down to a long-term deal, but he will likely only agree to this if they can give him assurances of regular first-team football. The sale of Koulibaly would provide a clear pathway for Colwill and could therefore be something that Chelsea need to get done quickly.