Chelsea ‘could axe 12 players’ in ruthless cull after Enzo Maresca tears up flop’s contract

The new Chelsea boss has already made his mark this summer.

Enzo Maresca has had a busy summer already in the early stages of his reign in charge of Chelsea with plenty of players heading in and out of Stamford Bridge.

Fresh players have been signed after Maresca succeeded Mauricio Pochettino at the West London club, which followed the Italian leading Leicester City back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has followed Maresca from the Foxes to Chelsea for £30m, while defender Tosin Adarabioyo has signed on a free transfer from Fulham.

Midfielder Omari Kellyman has joined from Aston Villa for £19m, striker Marc Guiu from Barcelona for £5m and left-back Caleb Wiley from Atlanta United for £8.5m.

Plenty of sales have taken place to fund these moves in the market.

The sale of defender of Ian Maatsen to Villa raised £35m, while Lewis Hall’s loan to Newcastle United was made permanent for an initial £28m.

Omari Hutchinson has moved to promoted Ipswich Town permanently for £20m, while Hakim Ziyech made the switch to Galatasaray for £2.5m.

Veteran defender Thiago Silva departed on a free transfer, while a fellow signing by Thomas Tuchel in 2020 has also now left Stamford Bridge.

Malang Sarr, who joined Chelsea for free from Nice, has had his contract cancelled to allow him to join Lens – and it appears Maresca’s bloated squad could change a lot more before the end of the window.

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According to the Mirror, up to a dozen players could be moved on this summer.

Striker Romelu Lukaku is hoping to move to Italian side Napoli on a permanent basis, while Kepa Arrizabalaga, who spent last season on loan at Real Madrid, has fewer than 12 months left on his deal.

Trevoh Chalobah has been left out of the Chelsea squad which has travelled to the USA for a pre-season tour as they aim to sell the academy product, while England international Conor Gallagher’s contract expires next summer and could also move on.

Djordje Petrovic, last season’s number one goalkeeper, has emerged as a potential player to sell, while Ben Chilwell is also named as having a question mark over his future.

Armando Broja and David Datro Fofana could also move on, while Cesare Casadei is reportedly being monitored by Lazio.

Alfie Gilchrist has not travelled to the United States and is set to head out on loan to pick up more experience, while Andrey Santos and Lesley Ugochukwu could experience the same fate.

Youngsters Harvey Vale, Leo Castledine, Bashir Humphreys and Alex Matos are also named as players who could be looking for loan moves this summer.