Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech’s loan move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr has reportedly fallen through after the two sides were unable to agree contract terms, according to a report from the Evening Standard.

Al-Nassr had submitted an £8 million bid for the player, which was duly accepted by the Blues – but for now, the move will not be taking place. There were also reports that Ziyech failed his medical with the club, but this is unconfirmed.

This is not the first time that a move away from Stamford Bridge has failed to materialise for Ziyech – in January, a loan deal with PSG reportedly fell through.

Do Chelsea need to offload Hakim Ziyech?

This is a difficult question to answer. On one hand, Chelsea need to sell as many players as possible to balance out their financial fair play – on the other hand, Ziyech is a criminally underrated player who is often overlooked by Blues fans.

£8 million is a bit on the cheap side for a player of the Moroccan magician’s quality. While he is considered surplus to requirements at Chelsea, £8 million is a pittance in the current market.

He possesses excellent passing and vision – in many ways, he is more of a wide playmaker than a traditional winger. Additionally, Ziyech is also a very technical dribbler who is brilliant at squeezing out of tight spaces when put under pressure from an opponent’s press. ‘

On the other hand, Chelsea have players such as Noni Madueke, Christopher Nkunku and Raheem Sterling who will take Ziyech’s pace in his absence – the Blues are not short of wide options by any means. Moreover, at the age of the 30, he is not getting any younger – his prime years as a winger are arguably behind him.

Hakim Ziyech football career summary so far

Born in 1993, Ziyech’s first professional contract came during his time at Heerenveen. After two seasons there, he made the jump to Twente, before being snapped up by Ajax in 2016.

In 2020, he made the jump to the Premier League with Chelsea for a fee of around £38 million. In total, Ziyech scored six goals for the Blues across 64 league appearances.