Chelsea are set to axe three first-team players in a bid to fund more transfers in January.
It comes after the Blues dropped down to 12th - the same position they finished last season - in the Premier League table following their 2-0 defeat at Everton. Chelsea have won just five of their 16 top-flight matches this term and have struggled, despite spending over £400million on new players in the summer.
Speaking after the game at Goodison Park, Mauricio Pochettino called on the Chelsea board to "improve" his squad in the "next transfer market". A new centre forward is high up on Pochettino's shopping list, with Brentford's Ivan Toney and Napoli's Victor Osimhen both linked with a move to Stamford Bridge.
However, Chelsea will have to sell players in the January transfer window if they want to add a big-name striker to their squad in order to comply with UEFA's Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations and three stars are already expected to be axed.
According to ESPN, Trevor Chalobah, Ian Maatsen and Noni Madueke are on the chopping block and Chelsea are ready to sanction their departures in the winter window.
Chalobah has not played a minute for Chelsea this season following a thigh injury and is set to leave the club, with Crystal Palace among those interested. The 24-year-old has two-and-a-half years left on his current contract and made 33 appearances in all competitions last term.
Former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel is a big admiror of Chalobah and handed him his debut at Stamford Bridge. Sky Sports reported back in August that Bayern Munich were in talks over a £50million move for the centre-back, though a deal ultimately failed to materialise in the summer.
Maatsen is another player who could depart the club, with Borussia Dortmund tracking his progress ahead of a potential January switch. However, ESPN say it's unclear whether Dortmund want to sign Maatsen permanently. The Dutch left-back has made nine Premier League appearances so far this season and was tipped to re-join Burnley for £31.5m in the summer after a successful loan spell last campaign.
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Madueke joined Chelsea from PSV for £28.5m in January but he has struggled for form during his time at the club so far, scoring just twice in 20 matches. The 21-year-old has fallen down the pecking order under Pochettino and has not started a top-flight game since the 2-0 defeat against Brentford in October.
Marc Cucurella and Armando Broja are among the other players who could be sacrificed as Chelsea try and balance the books following a difficult start to the campaign. Cucurella has deputised at left-back in Ben Chilwell's absence, while Broja has scored once - in their 2-0 win over Fulham - this season.
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