February 19, (THEWILL) – Chelsea head coach, Thomas Tuchel, has expressed his dissatisfaction with captain Cesar Azpilicueta’s contract predicament, with the defender entering the final six months of his current contract without a new contract with the club.
For some months, Azpilicueta has been in talks about extending his contract, but he has also received a better offer from Barcelona, which would provide him with the stability he seeks.
Should he opt to leave Chelsea after ten years at Stamford Bridge, a three-year agreement at Camp Nou is on the table for the Spain international.
Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, two of the 32-year-old’s teammates are in the same situation, and the club is worried that all three could leave in the summer, which will definitely jeopardise the stability of one of the best defences in European football.
In his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday’s Premier League encounter against Crystal Palace, Tuchel was asked about the Blues’ inability to resolve Azpilicueta’s future to this point and he did not mince words.
“Well the future of the players I like to be resolved normally immediately or not even in discussion, in the ideal world.
“We do not live in the ideal world, though, so I think the contract situation with Azpi is pretty clear. It is not the biggest pressure on this subject but as you know, we have some other players also with contractual situations that are not fully solved.”
“This is not ideal. This is also nobody’s particular fault. This can happen sometimes in the moment we deal with it, and Azpi deals with it very professionally and I do not have the feeling that it affects any of his performances.
“We are on it behind closed doors. This is where it needs to be dealt with.”
On his part, Azpilicueta was coy about his future and his response when asked was not direct. He said: “Of course, I arrived in the summer of 2012 and I didn’t have kids. My kids were born in London and you know how I feel about Chelsea. But I am not going to comment on my future.”
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
