Mauricio Pochettino mentioned either side should take their share of the blame for the long-running standoff between Chelsea and Romelu Lukaku with the striker’s future seemingly no nearer to being resolved.
The Belgium worldwide, who price £97.5million when he signed from Inter simply over two years in the past however has not performed for the membership since May 2022 and has not been given a squad quantity this season, has made clear his need to depart.
But regardless of curiosity from the Serie A facet in taking him on a mortgage deal as they did final season, Chelsea have been unwilling to think about a brief transfer and would relatively he was offered, although they’re eager to recoup as a lot as attainable of the hefty switch charge they paid.
Pochettino has just one recognised striker out there for Sunday’s go to to West Ham, summer time signing Nicolas Jackson, although the supervisor mentioned he expects academy product Armando Broja to play a task this season as soon as he has recovered from the ACL harm that has saved him out since December.
On Lukaku’s prospects of being reintegrated into the crew, he mentioned that nothing has modified since pre-season, regardless of the harm to summer time signing Christopher Nkunku and the membership’s failure to lure Michael Olise from Crystal Palace this week.
“The situation (with Lukaku) was clear before we arrived between the club and the player,” he mentioned. “For us, there’s nothing to do.
“It’s not only one side. It’s two sides. It’s two sides to try to find the best solution. You cannot put it only on the club, the situation. It’s both sides. The situation is where it is because of two sides. It’s like when you have a player in or a player out. It’s because both sides arrive to an agreement.
“The situation is how it is, we cannot change. We were informed before we signed, the situation on every single player, and after we signed we had the squad we had. I think it is so clear, nothing changed.
“If there’s something to inform, the club will inform.”
My thoughts is to return again to Europe within the Champions League subsequent season. We can not settle for one other thought.
Mauricio Pochettino
Chelsea’s problem with strikers predates Pochettino’s arrival at Stamford Bridge.
The crew struggled for objectives final season, whereas ex-Arsenal and Barcelona ahead Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was largely sidelined having been signed underneath former boss Thomas Tuchel however thought of surplus to necessities by subsequent managers Graham Potter and Frank Lampard.
He left to hitch Marseille in July however Pochettino has inherited the uncertainty surrounding Lukaku from his predecessors.
“For me I need to be focussed on the team,” he added. “To try to perform. We cannot spend energy on a situation that was clear before we started here.”
The supervisor additionally reiterated his targets for the season that nothing in need of qualification for the Champions League can be deemed acceptable.
Chelsea completed twelfth final season and missed out on Europe for under the second time since 1996, however with £350m spent to date on summer time recruits there’s expectation from Pochettino that the hole to the highest 4 have to be closed shortly, with successful the Premier League title his subsequent goal.
“My mind is to come back to Europe in the Champions League next season,” he mentioned. “We cannot accept another idea (other than) to put the club in the position they deserve to be.
“If someone is thinking in this way, I would be very worried, in this training ground or in Stamford Bridge.
“Today it’s so early to think too much on this situation. The idea is to win the Premier League. If someone has a different idea, it’s better to tell us, and we’ll say maybe we’ll find some solution.
“If we can create and perform in the way that we expect from day one, that is a process that we need to build. The mentality needs to be to win and to expect to play in the Champions League and to win the Premier League. If not, we will fail.
“The challenge is to create the mentality that all is possible.”
Meanwhile, the Blues have confirmed winger Hakim Ziyech has accomplished a season-long mortgage transfer to Galatasaray.
The 30-year-old Morocco worldwide, who joined the membership in a £33.3million swap from Ajax in the course of the summer time of 2020, has made 107 appearances and scored 14 objectives.
An announcement on Chelsea’s official web site mentioned: “Hakim Ziyech has completed a season-long loan to Galatasaray, with an obligation to make that move permanent. We wish Hakim well for his season ahead in Turkey.”