Chelsea have ‘given up’ on keeping out-of-contract defender

Jason Soutar
Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen celebrates a goal with his team-mates

Chelsea have reportedly ‘given up’ on keeping Andreas Christensen, who is out of contract in the summer.

The Blues are facing a potential defensive crisis with Christensen, Cesar Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger all out of contract at the end of the season.


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The European champions are reportedly keen on offering each defender a new deal, with talks with all three breaking down on numerous occasions.

Thiago Silva penned a new one-year deal in January, meaning Chelsea have at least tied down one of their first-team defenders.

Azpilicueta and Christensen have both been heavily linked with Barcelona, and the latter is edging closer to a move to the Nou Camp, as per Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness).

The newspaper claims that Chelsea have ‘given up’ on keeping Christensen, meaning he will leave Stamford Bridge as a free agent in the summer.

Furthermore, the chances of the Danish international moving to Barca is ‘increasing’.

Bayern Munich have also been linked with the 25-year-old defender, but are aware that the La Liga club are in pole position to sign the player.

Meanwhile, Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah has criticised referee Stuart Attwell after he failed to punish Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita for a tackle on him.

The Blues were beaten 11-10 on penalties by Liverpool in the League Cup final at Wembley on Sunday with substitute goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga missing the crucial spot-kick.

Chelsea were furious during the first 90 minutes when Keita was not even given a yellow card for a challenge on Chalobah that left him needing stitches.

Both players went in for the ball but Liverpool midfielder Keita caught Chalobah on the inside of the thigh with his studs, causing damage to the Chelsea defender.

And after the match Chalobah showed his frustration at the decision by sharing a clip of the incident with the caption: “Had to get stitches because of this. Referee is right there I don’t get it??”