Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel is ‘trying’ to keep captain Cesar Azpilicueta at the club amid interest from FC Barcelona.
The 32-year-old saw his contract extended at Stamford Bridge following an automatic extension due to reaching a certain number of matches played.
He had reportedly previously hoped to move to the Camp Nou on a free transfer, after adding the Club World Cup to his now-complete Chelsea trophy haul.
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Blues boss Tuchel has previously opened up on the future of his skipper following the Club World Cup triumph.
“We had a lot of these talks because I think it felt like he won everything after the Club World Cup so I can understand these thoughts, that maybe a cycle is at its end,” he said.
“Then there’s also a change of ownership and he played only under this owner so maybe it increased his second thoughts about his situation.
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“His extension kicked in at the same time and he loves the club, he loves the challenge and he loves to be here. He is our captain, we are still in dialogue and at some point we are also selfish because we are not responsible to solve any other club’s problems or to fulfil any other club’s wishes.”
The German finalised by admitting that he wishes to see Azpilicueta remain a Chelsea player due to his importance in the squad.
“Given the fact that we lose key defenders already, it’s not the ideal scenario to think about losing Azpi, even though I can understand his personal point of view. At some point, if you are a legend which he is, you deserve from me and the club a second look at it, to see if there’s maybe an exception from the rule and we are still in this process,” he continued.
“I would hope strongly (that he stays) and he knows this but we are still in the talks to find out the ideal solution.”
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Now, Fabrizio Romano has reported that Barcelona boss Xavi wishes to sign the Chelsea man, who has a two-year contract proposal ‘on the table’ to move to the Camp Nou.
Tuchel is ‘trying’ to keep his captain at the club but it has recently been revealed that Azpilicueta, along with Chelsea teammate Marcos Alonso, is keen to move to Barcelona.
It has also been reported that both Alonso and Azpilicueta were set to meet with the Blues to discuss their futures amid the interest.
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It remains to be seen as to what the future holds for the skipper but with both Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen departing, the new owners will most likely be keen to hold onto the 32-year-old this summer as they look to build a title challenging squad for their head coach.
Topics: Chelsea, Chelsea Transfer News & Rumours, Cesar Azpilicueta, Barcelona, Thomas Tuchel, Football
Nick Emms