According to recent reports, Chelsea forward Michy Batshuayi is heading ‘towards the exit’ at the club – with Crystal Palace and West Ham United said to be interested in the 26-year-old.
According to DH (via Sport Witness), Chelsea will make the Belgian striker – who joined the club from Olympique Marseille in a £35.1 million deal back in 2016 – available for transfer this summer, with Blues manager Frank Lampard reportedly stating that he will look to recover ‘all or part’ of the fee that Chelsea paid for Batshuayi.
The report goes on to state that Crystal Palace and West Ham are both interested in the forward – who is currently valued at £15.75 million by Transfermarkt and has one year remaining on his current contract with Chelsea.
In total, the 26-year-old has made just 77 appearances for the Blues over his four-season spell with the club, scoring 25 goals and providing six assists.
Due to this lack of first-team game time, Batshuayi has been loaned out on several occasions throughout his Chelsea career; to the likes of Borussia Dortmund, where he scored nine goals in 14 appearances; Valencia, scoring three in 23 games; and Crystal Palace, scoring six in 13 games.
TIF Thoughts…
Considering the fact that Batshuayi enjoyed a relatively successful spell on loan at Palace last season, one could make the argument that Roy Hodgson’s side holds the upper hand in any potential deal for the 26-year-old – as the striker is familiar with the club and enjoyed a goal-scoring rate of close to one in two while in South London.
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However, considering the fact that Chelsea are looking to recoup the majority of the £35.1 million they paid for the striker back in 2016, the deal may well be outside of Palace’s budget – considering the financial implications of the viral pandemic on the finances of football clubs.