Marseille interested in Chelsea defender Benoit Badiashile | OneFootball

A return to France could be on the cards for Chelsea defender Benoit Badiashile this summer.

According to French publication L’Equipe, Ligue 1 giants Olympique Marseille have expressed interest in the Blues centre-back.

Badiashile joined Chelsea in 2023. They paid £35 million to snap him up from AS Monaco, and he arrived at Stamford Bridge with plenty of promise.

However, the 24-year-old has struggled to live up to expectations. Injuries have hampered his development at Stamford Bridge.

However, Enzo Maresca is still a fan of the towering centre-back. Badiashile has only made 54 appearances for Chelsea since joining the club two years ago.

Chelsea are spoiled for options at centre-back, and competition for places has pushed him below Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo and Trevoh Chalobah in the pecking order.

The Frenchman featured just 21 times across all competitions last season.

Five of those came in the Premier League, where he only made three starts. Most of his appearances were in the Europa Conference League.

His only appearance in the Club World Cup was in Chelsea’s most recent 3-0 win against ES Tunis, and he gave a decent account of himself.

He recorded 101 touches, three clearances and two tackles. He also won all of his aerial battles (2/2) and half of his ground duels (2/4).

However, his place in the team is far from secure, and Chelsea could consider a deal if Marseille act on their interest.

Badiashile’s struggle for playing time could get worse when Wesley Fofana returns from injury, and Mamadou Sarr’s arrival from RC Strasbourg places more pressure on him.

Chelsea do not need to sell before they can bolster their squad this summer. But if a decent proposal comes in for Badiashile, it would be difficult for them to pass up the chance to capitalise.