Romano latest; Chelsea “very clear” on future of midfielder they’re treating like Raheem Sterling | OneFootball

It’s a busy time for Chelsea and that means a busy time for Fabrizio Romano.

The transfer insider is all over a few deals the Blues are conducting right now, none more so than the attempts to sell Carney Chukwuemeka.

Chelsea hold firm on sale attempts for midfielder

Chelsea remain keen to sell Carney Chukwuemeka, says Fabrizio Romano.

After being frozen out in the “bomb squad” at Cobham for the first half of last season, things finally got moving when the midfielder was loaned out to Dortmund in January. He played a fair amount there and looked to have done enough to earn a permanent summer move either to the German giants or to another team.

But in the end Chelsea’s asking price has proved too high for them or anyone else to take him off their hands.

Romano’s latest Tweet on the matter reiterates that Chelsea “remain very clear with all the clubs interested in Carney Chukwuemeka: he’s not available for loan.”

He adds that the Blues maintain the line they’ve had all summer: they will “only consider a permanent sale.”

Of course we’ve heard this plenty of times before and seen them crack. Raheem Sterling ended up being loaned out on deadline day last year after a summer of insisting that wouldn’t happen. It looks set to be the same story this year.

Why Blues are more optimistic about Chukwuemeka sale

There are two crucial difference between Sterling and Chukwuemeka however – age and wages. Both are far lower in Chukwuemeka’s case. While nobody is keen to take on Sterling’s £300,000 a week packet as he heads towards 31, Chukwuemeka demands less and has more resale value.

That means Chelsea have reasonable grounds to hold out for a the fee they think he’s worse. However they don’t want their bluff called again – having him sit around without playing for the first 6 months of last season hurt his value, and it helps nobody to repeat that.