There has been a lot of speculations about the comes and goes for Antonio Conte’s side in this upcoming transfer market, as it’s made very clear that the Italian doesn’t count with several guys.
Today, we’ll discuss the case of one of them, as there has been serious reports that Branislav Ivanovic could be on his way out to Crystal Palace, so I guess the question left to ask is: Should Chelsea sell Ivanovic to Pardew’s team?
Well, the answer to this question is actually pretty easy and clear: Yes, they MUST sell Ivanovic, whether if he goes to Crystal Palace or any other team in Premier or in a different league.
The Serbian player arrived in London at the beginning of 2008 from Lokomotiv Moscow, and it was a pretty great buy for the blues, as Branislav had offers from other teams like Juventus, Inter or AC Milan and Ajax, and even if he was a great player for Abramovich’s side during most of his career, age hasn’t been very kind with him these days and right at this very moment, he’s not the player he used to be.
Ivanovic shared his position on the field with many players but he stood there no matter who his competitor was. He won a lot of trophies in his stay with Chelsea, he gave some great performances and gave plenty of joy to Chelsea supporters, but maybe it is time to say goodbye to one of the best defenders Stamford Bridge has seen in this decade.
The Serbian doesn’t fit the scheme proposed by Antonio Conte, as his play involves a great running by the full backs and this is where Ivanovic lacks. So the remaining spot left for Branislav is the center of the field which has been successfully filled by Cesar Azpilicueta, so he really doesn’t have a lot of room in the Londinese squad.
On top of that, Ivanovic’s contract is near to expire and given his experience, there will definitely be several suitors for the Serbian. Having said that, there’s a big chance that Ivanovic will leave Chelsea in the next winter transfer window and Crystal Palace seems like the team which has taken the lead to sign the veteran. Branislav still has a couple of years of playing at maximum level and he’d have a great shot at doing so under Pardew’s command without having to leave the city.
Branislav has reportedly received a lot of offers not only by Crystal Palace, but from other teams like West Ham, Milan, Marseille and even from the Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning, so even if the Serbian has the last word in this matter, Chelsea should definitely go on and get a profit out of him while they still have the chance.
It’s always sad to watch great veterans like Branislav Ivanovic struggle to get minutes for the clubs that they’ve given so many joys throughout their career, but this is a cruel business and father time is a cruel as well, so there’s not much left to do but say thank you and good luck to one of the greatest defenders to ever play at Stamford Bridge.
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