Chelsea shot themselves in the foot by allowing midfielder Mateo Kovacic to speak to Manchester City.
The Croatian star, 29, still has one year left on his contract at Stamford Bridge, but is expected to move on to the champions in the summer turnaround window as Chelsea aim to reduce the length of their squad. Englishman Mason Mount is also expected to sign up. for Manchester United in an exceptional move.
And Mirror columnist Stan Collymore thinks it’s a big mistake by Todd Boehly and the companies as they make City more powerful and weaken their own team.
“What do Chelsea think of when Matthew Kovacic talks to Manchester City?” writes Collymore in his column this morning. They contribute to City’s good fortune and to their own detriment.
“City continually does its business moving without much noise and this is seen as another example. But they no longer want assistance and are the last club a Premier League team looks to to send players to.
Collymore believes a number of Premier League teams are getting together and agreeing to promote the more sensible players to Pep Guardiola’s side as it would reduce the gaping hole at the top of the table.
“If six or seven English clubs made a deal not to sell them, together they would make it harder for City to sign whoever they need and that could give them another chance to win the league. “
“Chelsea are keen to get rid of Kovacic now because he is entering the final year of his contract and they want to lighten their inflated squad, but they have been looking to sell to mainland clubs or even MLS. A player of his ability, who is sought after by champions, will have had many offers on the table.
And the former Liverpool and Aston Villa striker is self-assured, four-time Champions League winner Kovacic will have good fortune at City as he seeks to win six league titles in seven years.
He added: “Kovacic has just turned 29, he has a winning mentality thanks to 3 consecutive Champions League wins at Real Madrid, plus a Europa League at Stamford Bridge. He probably wouldn’t score too often, but he believes and his ability to pass over the more sensible ones will suit Erling Haaland to the ground.
“The Croatian may not be the first call-up on Guardiola’s team sheet if the deal goes through, but he will make City more potent and that’s why it’s Chelsea’s latest strangely bad decision. “
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