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Chelsea have activated a clause in the contract of full-back Ian Maatsen in order to fend off interest from Barcelona.
The Spanish club were hoping to sign the Dutch player on a free contract, but now will have to paya substantial fee for his services.
The 21 year old spent last season on loan with Burnley, helping them secure promotion as Champions.
He then seemed on the verge of joining the Lancashire club on a permanent deal in the summer, with terms agreed between both clubs, but pulled out of the deal at the last minute, preferring to fight for his place at Stamford Bridge.
Burnley, though, continue to monitor his situation, and there also a number of other Premier League suitors, including West Ham.
Chelsea’s attempts to sign him to a new long term deal have so far failed to come to fruition, because he is frustrated by his lack of first-team minutes under Mauricio Pochettino.
But by triggering the contract extension, they have bought themselves time whilst talks continue.
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.