Chelsea keep, loan or sell? Special final roster cut edition

4. Bonus

This bonus section is dedicated to a handful of established first team Chelsea players whose futures are under scrutiny right now. It’s safe to say that one of Emerson or Marcos Alonso will depart in the coming weeks. I know, I seem like a broken record saying that as both have been rumored to leave for a few years now. Emerson looks the likeliest of the two to leave given the fact he’s worth more on the open market. Nevertheless, Alonso was reportedly offered up to Inter Milan in the early Lukaku talks. The Blues would benefit from selling one and surprisingly, could survive with selling both.

Kurt Zouma is an interesting case. On one hand, he’s Chelsea’s most valuable asset on the transfer market. Zouma has two years left on his contract, he’s still relatively young and the team sees him as expendable. On the other hand, he’s one of the Blues’ most naturally gifted defenders. He may not fit into a back three as well as someone like Antonio Rudiger, but that’s not reason enough to offload the Frenchman. Zouma’s future will come down his willingness to remain at Stamford Bridge or negotiate with other teams. He’s already turned down the prospect of joining West Ham and Sevilla. Chelsea is said to be bringing in Kounde regardless, so the centerback room may get too crowded.

Tammy Abraham‘s future is entirely dependent on the Blues’ ability to get the Lukaku deal over the line in the coming days. Abraham is now being courted by Atalanta, who is also willing to pay almost the entirety of the £40 million valuation of the young striker. That is contingent upon Inter Milan moving for Duvan Zapata after losing Lukaku. It’s another Chelsea striker transfer triangle and Abraham is stuck in the middle.

These are my educated predictions as to what happens with the Blues before the transfer window slams shut on August 31. Who do you think makes the final cut? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!