‘Here we go!’ – Romano confirms Chelsea trio ‘verbally agree’ exit as Boehly is rescued by Saudis

Jason Soutar
Chelsea trio Edouard Mendy, Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy.

Chelsea trio Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy and Hakim Ziyech are all edging closer to a move to Saudi Arabia, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Blues are looking to offload several first-team players this summer and have been rescued by the free-spending Saudis, with a number of outcasts set to relocate to the middle east.

N’Golo Kante’s move to Al Ittihad has now been confirmed by both clubs and the aforementioned trio are expected to follow.

And another Chelsea player being discussed is Callum Hudson-Odoi, who had a very underwhelming spell on loan with Bayer Leverkusen in 2022/23.

Fabrizio Romano revealed on Tuesday evening that Hudson-Odoi has been approached by two clubs in Saudi Arabia, though it is unclear whether or not the 22-year-old would accept a move.

Wednesday morning has been full of here we go’s with Mauricio Pochettino managing to get rid of some deadweight early on in his tenure at Stamford Bridge.

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Romano has confirmed Ziyech will join Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr, Kalidou Koulibaly will join Ruben Neves at Al Hilal, and Edouard Mendy will join (and replace) Mohamed El Shenawy at Al Ahly.

All three have ‘verbally agreed’ to move to Saudi Arabia. The first of the three Romano said ‘here we go’ for was Ziyech.

‘Understand Al Nassr have reached full verbal agreement with Hakim Ziyech to join the club,’ he wrote on Twitter. ‘Personal terms agreed. Ziyech will sign until June 2026, if all goes to plan.

‘Agreement reached also with Chelsea, waiting to prepare, check then sign contracts. Here we go!’

Second up was 2020/21 Champions League goalkeeper of the season, Mendy.

‘Understand Chelsea have reached full verbal agreement with Saudi’s Al Ahli to sell Edouard Mendy. Mendy agreed personal terms with Al Ahli on three year deal, as revealed last week.

‘Contracts to be checked, then signed if all goes to plan. Here we go.’

And then shortly after he said those three sexy words for Mendy’s Senegal teammate Koulibaly, who only joined the Blues from Napoli last summer.

‘Understand Al Hilal are now closing in on Kalidou Koulibaly deal, here we go! Verbal agreement reached with Chelsea. Personal terms also agreed on a three year contract — he’ll join Ruben Neves.

‘Contracts now being checked… and then signed. Here we go.’

Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly was very willing to spend in his first year at Stamford Bridge, spending around £600million on a bunch of shiny new toys.

Thankfully for Boehly, he has been bailed out by a bunch of Saudi clubs who happen to have some pretty strong links to him…

Newcastle United’s owners, Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), own majority stakes in Al Ahly, Al Hilal and Al Nassr, and has also invested in Boehly’s company, Clearlake Capital.

As Boehly offloads a bunch of high-earning underperforming players, he will be able to reinvest into the first-team with a new striker, goalkeeper and defensive midfielder on the agenda.

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