Chelsea transfer chief Marina Granovskaia handed £15m headache after failed Napoli talks

Transfer update: How much have Premier League clubs spent?

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While Chelsea near the end of the season under Thomas Tuchel, it is easy to forget about their players not currently at the club. The Blues are preparing for the Champions League and FA Cup finals, but many of those under contract with the club will not be involved.

Chelsea’s transfer activity last summer attracted plenty of attention, with over £200million splashed out on Kai Havertz, Timo Werner, Ben Chilwell, Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy.

Those players are showing their worth under Tuchel, with the club looking forward to two major finals and looking good for a top-four finish.

But while the Blues were busy making headlines for those incoming at Stamford Bridge, there were plenty going in the other direction too.

As ever, Chelsea made the most of the loan system by sending out promising young players for game time, as well as those on the fringes of the first team.

Malang Sarr, Victor Moses, Baba Rahman, Davide Zappacosta, Ethan Ampadu, Michy Batshuayi, Ross Barkley, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Danny Drinkwater and Marco van Ginkel are all still contracted to Chelsea but playing their football elsewhere.

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Another player in the same situation is Tiemoué Bakayoko, who was signed for Chelsea in a £40m move from Monaco in 2017.

The French central midfielder signed a five-year contract with the Blues upon his arrival, but has made just 44 appearances for the club since.

The past three years have been spent out on loan, with AC Milan, former club Monaco and, now Napoli.

The 26-year-old still has another year left to run on his Chelsea contract but has no future at the club under Tuchel.

He has been a regular for Napoli this season, making 41 appearances under Gennaro Gattuso, but his future is once again up in the air.

Chelsea would understandably like to sell Bakayoko and earn a fee for a player who has not represented good value for money over the past four years.

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However, according to Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, Napoli ‘have no intention of buying him’, with Chelsea asking for around £15m (€18m) for his signature.

It therefore appears likely that Bakayoko will return to Stamford Bridge this summer, before the club attempts to find another buyer, or perhaps more realistically, a club willing to take him on loan again.

Napoli are currently enjoying a good spell under Gattuso, having won five and drawn two of their last seven league games to move up to fourth in Serie A.

That puts them one point ahead of Juventus, who are currently set to miss out on Champions League football for 2021/22.

If Napoli can finish well in their final two games of the season against Fiorentina and Verona to secure a Champions League place, then they might find the money for Bakayoko.

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