Ian Maatsen broke into Chelsea’s first-team months ago but may have an uncertain future if reports are to be believed. The 21-year-old has been linked with a move away in January and Todd Boehly desperately needs to generate funds.
Boehly has spent £1bn, so Chelsea are at risk of breaching Financial Fair Play regulations unless they ship some deadwood. It’s why there was a summer exodus that made £200m+ and why players like Maatsen are at risk of leaving.
Tim van Duijn of Voetbal International says Borussia Dortmund have entered talks with Chelsea over signing him in January.
Maatsen struggling for first-team football
Maatsen rose through the youth ranks at Chelsea, scoring two goals with six assists from 15 games for the U18s. He made 12 appearances for the U19s and made 30 appearances for the U23s before his senior call-up. Maatsen has gone on to make 16 appearances for the first-team but has only amassed 400 minutes of playing time.
The 21-year-old has started only one Premier League game this season and has been an unused substitute eight times. He’s behind Marc Cucurella and Levi Colwill in the left-back pecking order and has Ben Chilwell to return from injury. Dortmund took advantage of Jadon Sancho being on the periphery at Manchester City, so might they do the same with Maatsen?
BVB have three Dutchmen in their squad (Donyell Malen, Julian Rijkhoff, Prince Aning) that could help him settle in too.
Chelsea need the money
Maatsen has made Chelsea’s matchday squad in every league game this season, but van Duijn still says he’s expendable. He points to Boehly in his article, predicting the Blues owner will ship a lot of deadwood in January.
Chelsea are transitioning to a sell-to-buy sell policy and could transfer list any player that doesn’t provide value. A fourth-choice left-back sitting on the bench might be in the firing line as a result.
Maatsen has 18 months remaining on his contract, so suitors will be able to agree a pre-contract deal next year. Chelsea will want to make as much money as possible from his potential, so they can’t waste time.
