Mauricio Pochettino has personally blocked Ian Maatsen from leaving Chelsea
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has personally blocked Chelsea sensation Ian Maatsen from leaving Stamford Bridge in the summer window, putting Marc Cucurella’s future at the club atrisk.
As per Caught Offside, (h/t Football.London) the Argentine manager wants to examine the 21-year-old’s performance in pre-season before making a decision on his future. If Maatsen remains, he could fight for playing time with the former Brighton & Hove Albion full-back next season.
The former Tottenham Hotspur manager blocked Maatsen’s potential return to Burnley this summer as the Clarets aim to make the most of their time back in the Premier League It is also understood that if the Dutch player remains at Chelsea, it could hamper Cucurella’s future at the club. The Spaniard is already linked with a move away after a poor debut season in Blue.
Given that the Blues already have Ben Chilwell and Cucurella, Maatsen, who experienced a significant advance period at Burnley will add significant depth to the position. Pochettino clearly has every reason to look at every player at his disposal before making a decision.
Lewis Hall could also be another option at left-back. However, should Maatsen end up staying, he could struggle to break into the first XI, even for cup games. What exactly this means to the senior players on the roster remains to be seen.
After convincing at Burley under Vincent Kompany, Maatsen deserves a chance to stay at Chelsea. However, that will largely depend on how well he performs during the pre-season. If Pochettino sticks with his choice to keep the Dutch full-back, Cucurella will undoubtedly have a volatile future at Chelsea given how difficult it will be to distribute playing time among four left-backs.
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If Chilwell is injured, Pochettino may choose to employ Hall or Maatsen instead of the Spanish left-back, as both players excelled last year. Either way, we will not just have depth but also another player who could be sold for a decent fee,