Mateo Kovacic addresses rumour on Chelsea’s future

Kovacic has confirmed that he will leave Chelsea this summer

Mateo Kovacic addresses rumour on Chelsea’s future

Stephen Oladehinde 18:01 - 08.06.2023

Mateo Kovacic has confirmed that he will leave Stamford Bridge this summer after rejecting a new contract with Chelsea.

The Croatian international was signed from Madrid in 2019 and has been an integral part of the squad.

However, he rejected a contract extension from Chelsea a few months ago leaving him with just a year left on his contract.

Manchester City are in talks with Chelsea to acquire him for next season and are still negotiating a suitable transfer fee for him.

The midfielder has confirmed that he will be leaving the club as he looks forward to a new challenge ahead of a new season.

Chelsea midfielder Kovacic on the move
Chelsea midfielder Kovacic on the move

Kovacic confirms Chelsea exit

The 29-year-old has said that he will be leaving Chelsea and he is set to join Manchester City this summer as negotiations between both clubs are still ongoing.

Speaking ahead of Croatia's Nations League semi-final against the Netherlands and reported by Daily Mail, Kovacic said, “I have one year left on my contract with Chelsea. It's been a really bad season.

“Everything indicates that after five years I will change the environment, but we will see what happens.”

Kovacic also spoke about Man City who are looking to sign him saying, “Manchester City is a top team and deserves to be in the Champions League final. That's what I have to say. The summer is long, we'll see what happens in the future.”

var widgetLoaderConfig = widgetLoaderConfig || { CDN_URL: 'https://widgets.sportal365.com', APP_LINK: 'desktop', API_URL: 'https://africa.football.api.sportal365.com/', API_KEY: '2f852b4de2f3a5cf3188e74b33087bb4:2c18422f8e826a7d11aeed52edb2449e', LANG: 'en', REQUEST_INTERVAL: 30, ENABLE_BET_SLIP: false, AUTHOR: false, THEME: "light", TOURNAMENT_ORDER: "pulse_nigeria", LINK_OPTIONS_V2: { 'player' : { 'url': '/football/player/{playerId}' }, 'team' : { 'url': '/football/{teamId}' }, 'tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}' }, 'match': { 'url' : '/football/match/{matchId}', 'sort': { 'criteria': 'alphabetically', 'direction': 'asc' } }, 'configuration': { 'newWindow': false }, 'standings_tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}/standings' } } }; if (!document.querySelector('script[src="https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js"]')) { window.setTimeout(function () { let scriptCss = document.createElement('link'); scriptCss.href = 'https://www.pulsesports.co.ke/css/sport-widgets.css?v=1668785443'; scriptCss.rel = 'stylesheet'; scriptCss.type = 'text/css'; document.body.appendChild(scriptCss); let scriptTag = document.createElement('script'); scriptTag.src = 'https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js'; scriptTag.defer = true; scriptTag.onload = function () { window.setTimeout(function () { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }, 200); }; document.head.appendChild(scriptTag); }, 0); } else { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }

Kovacic praise Man City

Kovacic has also heaped praise on Manchester City, calling Pep Guardiola's Treble-seekers a great team despite rumours of a possible transfer to the Etihad.

Pep Guardiola’s side are just one trophy away from winning a treble this season as they prepare for the Champions League final against Inter Milan.

The Croatian has spoken highly of Man City saying they are a top team and they deserve to be in the Champions League final.

Man City are currently in the transfer market for a new midfielder as they look for a possible replacement for Ilkay Gundogan who is yet to sign a new contract with Kovacic seen as his replacement.