Ben Chilwell's Chelsea future is in doubt just days before the new Premier League season gets underway with the full-back considering his options, according to reports.
The Blues defender joined the club in a £50m deal from Leicester four years ago but has failed to convince some sections of supporters who have called for him to leave in the summer.
Chelsea have been amongst Europe's biggest summer spenders in the transfer window once again with new boss Enzo Maresca backed with £200m worth of new arrivals, while others wait to see if they will be sold on.
Chilwell was part of Chelsea's pre-season tour of the United States, but is now facing the prospect of needing to find a new club with the Blues open to offers for the full-back, as reported by talkSPORT.
The 28-year-old made just 13 Premier League appearances last season and faces the prospect of playing a back-up role in the upcoming campaign after Marc Cucurella's impressive Euro 2024 campaign.
Ben Chilwell's Chelsea future is in doubt just days before the new Premier League season gets underway
Waves of new recruits arriving at Stamford Bridge also make the need to raise more funds through player sales an increasing priority and players on the fringes of the squad are being encouraged to move on.
Conor Gallagher was set to join Atletico Madrid before the midfielder was told to come back to London as the deal risks stalling, while Chilwell is also being advised his position is at risk.
The former Premier League winner only signed a new contract extension with Chelsea last year that still has three years left to run and putting Chilwell in a position to decide his own future.
However, any idea of forcing him into Maresca's plans were dealt a huge blow by the Chelsea boss who described Chilwell's position in his team as 'delicate' during pre-season.
'His situation is a bit delicate in terms of we are trying to find a solution for him in terms of position. But he probably needs a bit of time. Delicate in terms of finding the right position for him.
‘We want players that can perform 100 per cent and for sure in these two or three weeks, Malo (Gusto) and Reece (James) can both do the work required of them and both finish with more assists or more dangerous in the way they were being used in the past because in that position they are good enough to make last passes because their quality, they are both very good.’
Renato Veiga and Levi Colwill also provide further competition in the left-back position with Chelsea well-stocked with defensive options.