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Chelsea midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko could be headed to Olympique de Marseille this summer if a report by FootMercato's Santi Aouna is to be believed. The French side have apparently reached an agreement with the midfielder and a four-year contract is on the table.
Bakayoko has had a torrid time in England since he was brought to west London from AS Monaco by Antonio Conte. In the five years since then, he has only managed 43 senior appearances for the Blues.
The Frenchman has been away on loan for four of the five seasons he has been on Chelsea's books so far. Clearly, he has failed to impress the managers that have managed the Blues since Conte's departure.
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The 27-year-old midfield general could now be offloaded on a permanent basis, with Marseille keen on a move. That is, if manager Igor Tudor can be convinced.
The French club's head coach is apparently blocking Bakayoko's transfer to Orange Velodrome. The former Stade Rennais midfielder signed a two-year-long loan contract last summer to stay at AC Milan until 2023.
It remains to be seen what stance the Italian giants will take regarding the midfielder's future. As per Transfermarkt, he was not a trusted starter last season as he played just 493 minutes of league football under Stefano Pioli.
Conor Gallagher set to stay at Chelsea this season despite Crystal Palace interest
According to journalist Simon Johnson (h/t Football Fancast), Conor Gallagher is set to stay with Chelsea for the upcoming season.
Tuchel is apparently a big fan of the English midfielder and wanted to keep him at Stamford Bridge last season as well. This would come as a blow to Crystal Palace, who held hopes of permanently re-signing the midfielder once again after his successful loan spell last season.
The 22-year-old, who now has four senior caps for the Three Lions, won the Crystal Palace 'Player of the Season' award after making 34 league appearances in the 2021/22 campaign. He scored eight goals and assisted a further three.
It is important for the Blues to start planning ahead. Jorginho and N'Golo Kante are on the wane if last season was anything to go by, while Saul Niguez is back at Atletico Madrid.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley failed to win Tuchel's trust last season and were restricted to sporadic starts across the campaign. Since the German manager favors Gallagher, perhaps we can finally see the box-to-box midfielder feature in a greater capacity for the Blues next season.
