Three big questions: Chelsea’s Michy Batshuayi and a foot out the door

2. Will he finally be sold or will it be another loan adventure?

After a season and a half of being a back up to a Spanish striker (Diego Costa and Alvaro Morata), Batshuayi opted to try his luck on loan to show his worth. That actually went pretty well but he returned to a new Chelsea manager in Maurizio Sarri.

Batshuayi again went out on loan to Valencia with the implication being the move would become permanent if he did well. He did not.

So, he returned to the Blues, went back out on loan to Crystal Palace and again did well. Suddenly it looked just as likely that he would get a chance to impress new Chelsea manager Frank Lampard as it was that he would be sold.

He did not impress Lampard. Batshuayi was given a few chances and ultimately Tammy Abraham and Olivier Giroud were the two strikers Lampard felt comfortable with. Now enters a period where it looks as though Batshuayi will be sold, but that is far more complicated than it needs to be.

First of all, what is Batshuayi even worth on the transfer market? He is a striker that had good stints at Dortmund and Crystal Palace but neither are recent stints. Around those periods is poor play at Valencia or flat out not playing at Chelsea.

Then add Covid and its disruptive effect on the market. Even if the Blues simply wanted to break even on Batshuayi’s transfer fee, that would be difficult enough with his true value being mysterious. It is more difficult when no one but Chelsea really has the means to buy players.

So, unless Chelsea is willing to just take whatever for a transfer, a loan becomes an option. It is hardly an ideal option for the player or the club but sitting on the bench for another season, but this time as fourth choice striker (or worse) certainly is not an option either. The Blues are going to want to move Batshuayi on and the player himself surely wants the same. The only question is how.