Hazard, Morata, now Mount? Chelsea’s biggest sales have flopped

Cameron Smith

• 6 Jul 2023 11:00 BST
• 6 min read

Mason Mount has become Chelsea’s seventh departure of a historic clear-out this summer, with the Cobham academy graduate switching blue for red and joining Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United.

The 24-year-old won Chelsea’s ‘Player of the Year’ award in both 2021 and 2022, but an injury-hit season saw him fail to replicate that form last year. After rejecting a contract extension at Stamford Bridge, with money reportedly an issue, the Blues sought to sell Mount rather than lose him for free next summer.

And given Ten Hag’s long-term admiration for the player, which dates back to when Mount starred in the Eredivisie on loan at Vitesse Arnhem five years ago, it’s perhaps no surprise the Dutchman sanctioned a move that could reach €70 million if add-ons are accomplished.

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Considering Chelsea had the most bloated squad in world football last year, their decision to trim down the first-team is wise, but some fans have been critical of the club’s decision to sell to Premier League rivals - as they have done with Kai Havertz’s sale to Arsenal and Mount’s move to Old Trafford.

Both have commanded high fees and have entered Chelsea’s top 10 most expensive sales in history - Mount at number three and Havertz at number two. The only player that Chelsea have ever sold for a higher amount is Eden Hazard. The Belgian joined Real Madrid for a whopping initial fee of €100m. Add-ons were also included in a deal that could’ve reached roughly €165m if certain conditions were met.

Hazard has, of course, left Los Blancos, meaning Chelsea will no longer benefit financially from the sale, but the west London club did earn an additional €20m when Real Madrid won the Champions League in 2022, thanks to add-ons included in Hazard’s transfer.

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The good news for Chelsea is that Hazard’s failings in Madrid is the norm for their big-money sales, rather than the exception.

Are Chelsea good sellers?

The Blues were known for their exuberant spending on proven stars under Roman Abramovich, and that willingness to pump money into the club has not stopped under Todd Boehly’s reign. In fact, Chelsea have been even more active in the market since the American billionaire took charge.

In his first 12 months as owner, Boehly splashed a ludicrous €600m on new players, many of whom were younger stars in need of development - such as Noni Madueke, Mykhailo Mudryk and Cesare Casadei - while several could be moved on just one year later.

Kalidou Kouliably joined last summer from Napoli, but failed to live up to expectations and he has been sold to Saudi Arabia Pro League club Al-Hilal for €23m - one year after he was purchased for €38m.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Marc Cucurella could join him in departing Stamford Bridge just one year after arriving.

While six of Chelsea’s seven departures so far this summer have been sold for less than their Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) - Ruben Loftus-Cheek is the only exception - the Blues’ record of big-money sales is actually quite good. In fact, the majority of their top 10 most expensive sales of all-time have failed to live up to expectations at their next club.

Hazard is the obvious example and he was a simply superb piece of business for Chelsea. Of course, the Blues were unlikely to have predicted the injury crisis he would endure at Real Madrid, but the west London club sold him at his peak - after a season in which he scored 16 and assisted 15 in the Premier League - and Los Blancos got virtually nothing back on their investment.

However, he’s not the only good sale. Oscar was shipped to China for a whopping €70m, and while the Brazilian has fared fairly well in Asia, Shanghai SIPG (now known as Shanghai Port) have only won the Chinese Super League once since Oscar arrived.

Chelsea also extracted a seriously good fee for a player that had become unwanted under Antonio Conte.

Diego Costa was a disastrous re-purchase from Atletico Madrid - he netted just 10 La Liga goals in three seasons back at the club, and only made 54 league appearances during that time too, owing to injury issues.

The Spanish club released him in January 2021 and he spent six months without a club before joining Atletico Mineiro on a free transfer. Another example of selling at the perfect time from Chelsea.

David Luiz fared okay at Paris Saint-Germain after Chelsea sold him to the Parc des Princes for €60m in 2014, but didn’t start over 26 league games in either of his two campaigns in France. He was far better in the middle of Conte’s back three when Chelsea signed him back for just €35m in 2016.

Alvaro Morata was never the reliable goal-scorer Chelsea needed, so the €56m fee received from Atleti was certainly welcomed, although he has fared better in La Liga than the Premier League.

Nemanja Matic was excellent in his first campaign at Manchester United, but he never won a trophy during his five years at Old Trafford and the Red Devils lost him on a free transfer to Roma in 2022. However, Chelsea have arguably still not replaced the Serbian since his departure, so this is one of the few sales that hasn’t quite worked out for the Blues.

Tammy Abraham is another example - he has found his feet in Rome under Jose Mourinho and continued to display his excellent goal-scoring ability. His second season in the Italian capital was far less productive than his first, however, as he netted nine in all competitions after bagging a whopping 27 during the 2021/22 campaign.

Juan Mata is the final name on the list and could be placed in either category. On one hand, he was a brilliant servant for Man Utd across an eight year spell at the club.

On the other hand, he never came close to matching the 11 goals and 17 assists he notched during the 2012/13 Premier League season (whilst at Chelsea), he never won the Champions League (like he did at Chelsea) and he started just 135 league games out of a possible 304 at Man Utd.

On the whole, Chelsea have emerged as the winners when they’ve sold big. The question is whether Mount, and Havertz, will buck the trend or continue the long-running theme of Chelsea sales failing at their next club.