Apparently Mourinho’s departure had a big impact on the way players see their future at Stamford Bridge. While some clearly improved after the Special One said goodbye to Chelsea, others are rumored to be keen on leaving. The first on the list is Nemanja Matic who is willing to follow Mourinho to Manchester United. According to Metro, the Serbian international has already spoken to Conte who is very likely to push for transferring Radja Nainggolan and Kante who were already linked to Chelsea right after the Italian manager was appointed. Would Chelsea be better off without Matic though? Despite his poor season, he should not be let go easily. He was brought back to Stamford Bridge for a reason and was one of the best players during the 2014-2015 season.
Conte has the personality, the experience and the quality to empower the players who lost faith. He should convince Matic to stay as he is a very good fit for a 3-5-2 season which is the Italian manager’s formation.
The other player rumored to leave is Diego Costa. Apparently, the Brazilian born Spain international is not happy in the Premier League and would like to return to Atletico Madrid. These rumors were fueled by none other than Atletico’s president Enrique Cerezo who claims the club wants Costa in spite of the fact that he will be very, very difficult to sign. Pedro also contributed to the idea of his teammate’s departure. In recent statements he was skeptical when it comes to Costa’s future especially after he was left home by Del Bosque.
A couple of days back, the idea of Costa joining Atletico could have meant that the Blues have a chance of signing Griezmann. A swap would have been a decent compromise. That idea was nipped in the bud after the Frenchman signed a new deal with the Spanish side until 2021. It`s too bad that Costa does not feel at home at Stamford Bridge. Even if he does score goals even when he is not 100% happy, it would still be a waste to keep such a talented striker against his will. Maybe now the rumors regarding Higuain’s transfer make sense. There was no point in spending big money on him or on any other striker for that matter when you have Costa. If he decides to leave though, the Blues may have a hard time keeping up with City, Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool and United