A move from midfielder Mateo Kovacic to Manchester City is apparently approaching. According to information from Fabrizio Romano agreed with the Champions League finalists. The Italian transfer expert wrote for the first time at the end of May that Chelsea had allowed the Croatian international to hold talks with the English champions.
With Kovacic’s contract expiring in 2024 – with a market value of €40m he is one of the most valuable players to do so – the Blues are said to be ready for sale. The next step, according to Romano, is for the clubs to negotiate the fee to be paid.
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Mateo Kovacic to Man City? Chelsea FC dependent on income
After the record investments in the past season and further planned transfers as a result of missing out on the European Cup, Chelsea is dependent on sales in order to meet UEFA’s “financial sustainability” requirements. These state, among other things, that clubs may only spend 70 percent of their income on the squad – for example on transfers and salaries. An income for Kovacic in line with the market value would be booked in one go for the 2023/24 season and parts could be reinvested in new players accordingly. In contrast to purchases, for which the expenses are amortized over the contract period, income always applies to the corresponding season.
In order to comply with these regulations, Chelsea not only provided the expensive signings with very long contracts in order to be able to write off the transfer fees in the books over as long a period of time as possible, but will also probably sell players at high prices. Candidates from midfield include Kovacic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek (27) and Mason Mount (24). In addition, it recently looked as if N’Golo Kanté (32) would switch to Saudi Arabia instead of extending his expiring contract. Denis Zakaria (26) will leave Stamford Bridge when his loan ends and return to Juventus for the time being.
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Kovacic’s market value is currently estimated at EUR 40 million after it was slightly devalued over the course of the season. He has been at Chelsea since 2018, first on loan from Real Madrid and then signing on for €45m the following year. He made 219 appearances for the Blues (6 goals/15 assists) and this season only four teammates have tallyed more minutes than Kovacic’s 2,402.
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