Mateo Kovacic has been one of the best players for Chelsea this season (Getty Images)
According to a recent report by the Evening Standard, Premier League giants Chelsea are once again said to be on the fence about whether or not a permanent deal should be offered to loan star Mateo Kovacic.
The Croatian international is a Real Madrid player, who can be signed by the Blues irrespective of the transfer ban taking effect. Although they initially did look keen on keeping the youngster in west London, the scene seems to have taken a massive U-turn over the past week.
It has been suggested that the Maurizio Sarri did have Kovacic in his team plans but new developments on the Chelsea managerial front has put this issue on hold.
Maurizio Sarri is said to have agreed on a deal with Juventus to take over as manager in the summer and because of the this, the Chelsea board are still indeterminate of whether to sign him on a permanent basis.
Considering that he is already registered with the squad and wouldn’t be counted as a new addition does come as an added bonus though.
Despite Chelsea’s transfer ban, there have been talks of a squad revamp over the summer.
It has been suggested that Blues outcast Danny Drinkwater will be sold in the summer and that they expect the likes of Mason Mount and Tiemoue Bakayoko, who shone while out on loan at their respective clubs, to be incorporated into the first-team as well.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek is another player who has impressed heavily since breaking into the side and he must be given a lot of opportunities to develop.
Although none of this will come as good news to Kovacic, the Croatian does have qualities of his own to call upon. He was a regular feature in Sarri’s setup last season but the Croatian consistently failed to impress and ended the season with a fairly disastrous record of 2 assists and no goals.
Despite this, his movement in the middle of the park added to the fact that he’s an excellent dribbler did help the Blues control midfield in some tight games.
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It has been further suggested in the report the Blues insisted on the Croatian being left out of Real Madrid’s Eden Hazard talks earlier this week.
The Blues have a possible transfer ban to worry about and with Champions League football in the offing as well, it would be wise to keep a player who has the experience and quality to make a difference to the side.