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Indications from Stamford Bridge are that at least three players could be sold in January to raise funds for more acquisitions.
One of them is Ross Barkley who is once again in the fringes of first-team football and did not even play a full 90 minutes in the Carabao Cup before Christmas against Brentford. He has just 18 months left on his current deal, and with no new contract offer likely to be made, he is very much surplus to requirements now.
Another potential departure is Hakim Ziyech, Frank Lampard’s first signing as manager, who would normally have been set to join the Morocco squad at the African Cup of Nations, but who is remaining in West London after falling out with his national coach. He finds himself facing heavy competition in his preferred position and it’s clear he is not an automatic choice under Thomas Tuchel when everybody is fit.
And then there is Ruben Loftus-Cheek who is another one who will struggle for regular game time when Tuchel has a full squad at his availability. Given the quality of players also out on loan just now – like Conor Gallagher and Billy Gilmour – he knows that his prospects in West London will be even bleaker once they return to the club at the end of the season.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.