Even before the change of ownership happened, the future of César Azpilicueta at Chelsea was up in the air.
The Spanish defender was reportedly made a promise by the previous board, meaning one comprised of the likes of Roman Abramovich and Marina Granovskaia, that he would be allowed to leave.
There was an option in his contract to extend it by a year, which has since been triggered, but there was still a belief that he could get his move to Barcelona, who want him, regardless of this.
He’s still waiting to see if that will be adhered to, because the new owners aren’t the ones who made him that promise in the first place.
Marca have an article on the situation on Tuesday, who report Chelsea’s Todd Boehly and co. ‘will travel to London to unclog’ a number of situations, including that of Azpilicueta.
It’s made clear the Spaniard ‘is still waiting to know if the new owners will keep the word that the previous leaders gave him or if, on the contrary, they will force him to stay’.
While Xavi has ‘specifically requested’ the signing of Azpilicueta, who is himself ready to move to Barcelona, he also won’t force a move.
Marca point out that if Todd Boehly tells him ‘that he cannot leave, he doesn’t plan to adopt a position like that of Robert Lewandowski’, and he could even ‘start thinking about renewing his contract with the Blues’.
Thomas Tuchel, down his end, ‘would like to continue counting on his captain, but he understands that the footballer was made a promise’.
If, on the other hand, he is allowed to go, there is one problem in that Chelsea will want some money for the move.
That’s because ‘they don’t relish the idea of their captain going for free’, which, with Barcelona’s current financial issues, could be a problem.
