Chelsea willing to sell wonderkid as latest crack in Boehly project appears

Tom Weber

Updated: 25 Jun 2024 10:57 CDT
4 min read

Chelsea are willing to sell Cesare Casadei this summer, according to a report.

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The Italian midfielder arrived from Inter in 2022 with big expectations. Deemed an almost criminal oversight by the Italian giants and further proof that domestic youth football was crumbling, local media were furious while Chelsea believed that they had pulled off a coup.

Regarded as one of the biggest talents in Italy, Casadei joined the Blues for just short of €15 million. After impressing on loan at then-Championship side Reading and at the U20 World Cup in June 2023, the midfielder headed to eventual second-tier champions Leicester last summer.

He continued his good form under Enzo Maresca, now in charge of Chelsea, and the Blues eventually recalled him in the winter, leaving many surprised. This was seen as proof that Casadei would now go on to be integrated into the first team and, indeed, he went on to make 11 appearances in the second half of the 2023/24 campaign.

However, despite the arrival of Maresca at Stamford Bridge, Casadei could already be on the way out again.

Chelsea could sell Casadei

According to The Athletic, Chelsea won't stand in Casadei's way if he were to request a move this summer, which implies that the Blues are refusing - or are unable - to give the 21-year-old guarantees that he will play a role in the first team next season.

It is claimed that Chelsea still rate the Italian highly but that they are willing to cash in on him. The Blues would expect to fetch a higher sum than they paid for him in 2022.

Still, it seems odd that Chelsea would be willing to offload Casadei after just two years and 11 appearances. The youngster currently has an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of just €6.3 million, which means that even if they were to make a profit on him, it would not be a particularly big one.

This can't be what owner Todd Boehly had in mind when he implemented a transfer policy focused on snapping up the brightest young talents in the world. To be sure, Boehly and company know that not every one of their wonderkid signings will go on to be a star for the senior team, but what are a few million euros of profit on Casadei to a side like Chelsea?

If anything, rather than illustrating the success of Chelsea's signing policy, it shows its weakness and the lack of coordination that has come to typify the Blues' recruitment under the Boehly regime.