Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas has stated that he is prepared to risk losing strike trio Salomon Kalou, Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba next summer for nothing.
All three will become free agents in the summer with their contracts expiring. The trio have been linked with January moves away from Stamford Bridge.
Unlikely
Ask if he would sell the strikers in the January transfer window the Portuguese boss replied: “ I don’t think so, it happens all the time. We won’t need to sell these players,”
“The most important thing is for the club to try to defend its interests. We know these players are of higher importance. That’s why the offers are on the table, apart from with Anelka, end of story. We will try to get them to reach an agreement.”
Recoup
Even if the Blues did sell the strikers in January they are unlikely to recoup much money for them anyway. The fact that they are available on a free in the summer would reduce any likely transfer fee to next to nothing anyway.
The club might as well hang on to the trio until the summer and as Villas-Boas stated later on in his press conference there is plenty of time to re-negotiate their contracts before the summer arrives.
Unknown
It seems unknown where the strikers futures lie. Drogba and Anelka are well into their thirties so their next move could be their last big transfer. Anelka has been linked with a move to the MLS and that would likely to one last big pay day for the former-Arsenal striker.
Competition
Didier Drogba has played a big part in Chelsea’s recent history but due to a number of reasons he is no longer considered first choice striker. The arrival of Fernando Torres last January moved him down the striking pecking order at the club.
The emergence of England under-21 international Daniel Sturridge has been encouraging for the club and player but for Drogba its yet more competition for a first team place. However I still believe Drogba has something to give Chelsea.
With him in the twilight of his career he may move to another club in search of regular first team football. However Drogba has emotional ties to the club, so it seems likely that he will sign a contract extension and maybe see out the rest of his career at Stamford Bridge.
Back-up
I don’t think Salomon Kalou has ever really been considered as anything more than a back-up player at Chelsea. At 26 years of age he has never nailed down a regular first team spot at the Bridge.
It’s a shame because he does have decent talent and at a lot of clubs he would be a first team regular. He could have to make a difficult decision for the sake of his career and move on in the summer. If he did want to move on then this would be his ideal opportunity.
However he might be happy not playing regularly just to be at a big club like Chelsea. Nobody apart from Kalou knows what he is thinking or what he wants to do.
Acceptance
There almost seems an acceptance at Chelsea that Nicolas Anelka will leave this summer. The Blues haven’t yet offered Anelka a new contract. It seems inevitable that the French striker will now leave the club.
As well as being linked with a move to MLS he has also recently been linked with a move to Russia with big spending Anzhi. It would be a major payday for Anelka and at 33 probably the last move of his career.
Needed
Even with Fernando Torres starting to rediscover his form the trio are still needed this season. They are all still talented players and can make a contribution to the team. If Chelsea are going to get anywhere near the Premier League title this season then these three will have a part to play.
If they leave in the summer then at least Chelsea will have time to find replacements to play alongside Sturridge and Torres next season. For now though they should be concentrating on Chelsea and trying to win the Premier League title and challenging for the Champions League.
Will Salomon Kalou, Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba be at Chelsea next season?
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