Italian Champions want Chelsea Outcast in the Midst of an Injury Crisis
Nov 30, 2016 at 3:42 PM
With yet another commanding victory at the weekend, this time in a London derby over title challengers Tottenham Hotspur, Antonio Conte’s Chelsea are now the in-form side in the Premier League as they keep their place at the top of the table intact after 13 games.
The manager will be happy with the performances of the squad recently and will hope that they can keep up the good work throughout the season. He will surely look to add a couple of new faces to keep the squad honest and this might see the manager let go of a few fringe players who have no role in his plans at the club.
One such player who may well be on his way out of the club in January is veteran defender Branislav Ivanovic.
The 32-year-old defender has been a mainstay at the back for Chelsea for a while now but Antonio Conte has realised that his time at the club is over and has frozen him out of the first team. With Conte’s 3-man defence working well, Ivanovic has no real place in the side this season and is nothing less than a fringe player with Chelsea active in just 2 competitions this season.
At 32, he is an experienced player who can walk into top European squads and Italian champions Juventus are now looking to add him to their squad in January.
The Italian outfit were dealt a cruel blow recently after defenders Danny Alves and Leonardo Bonucci picked up injuries that might keep them out of the game for a while.
And they want to add the Chelsea outcast to their squad and have identified him as a player who can provide cover to the back 4 in all positions if needed.
At his age, Ivanovic is an experienced defender and Conte will know that he still has enough football left in him. The manager will surely have to add another option to his back-5 before he can sell the Serbian in January.
The Serbian however, is into the last year of his contract and will run out of one at the end of the season. Conte will know that giving him another year is not really advisable leaving Chelsea with just two options: Sell him in January or risk losing him on a free in the summer.
Surely Conte will know what is best for him and act accordingly but do you think Ivanovic is a bright option for Juventus?