One Chelsea star's future is now all but confirmed, with the player having reached a full agreement with a new club ahead of the summer.
Progress under Pochettino
Though thrashed 5-0 at the hands of Arsenal, Chelsea's late season form has been best the Stamford Bridge outfit have seen in some time. They have lost one Premier League game since February, and dismantled a sorry West Ham United side 5-0 courtesy of two goals from Nicolas Jackson in their most recent outing, a result which lifted them above Manchester United, though the Red Devils have a game in hand.
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It means that, with three games left to play, Mauricio Pochettino's side trail Newcastle by just two points and are only six points behind bitter London rivals Tottenham, who they beat in midweek. In turn, that has left Blues fans dreaming of Europa League football, which could still be theirs should they continue their strong end to the season and see the teams around them drop points.
Premier League table as it stands
Position
Club
Played
Won
Drawn
Lost
Goal Difference
Points
5th
Tottenham Hotspur
35
18
6
11
11
60
6th
Newcastle United
35
17
5
13
22
56
7th
Chelsea
35
15
9
11
11
54
8th
Manchester United
34
16
6
12
1
54
9th
West Ham United
36
13
10
13
-14
49
With Manchester United playing host to title-chasing Arsenal this weekend, the possibility is certainly there. Regardless, there has been clear progress under Pochettino in recent weeks, and a decision to part ways with him may well be one that the club hold fire on as they seek some stability at Stamford Bridge. One man, however, will be leaving.
Defender chooses next club as agreement reached
That comes in the form of veteran defender Thiago Silva, who has now reportedly decided on his next club ahead of the summer. The Brazilian already announced that he would be leaving the Blues this summer, telling fans that "Chelsea means a lot to me, I came here with the intention of only staying for a year and it ended up being four years".
It was later reported that he had offers from three London clubs to stay in England, with the 39-year-old available on a free transfer this summer as his £110k per week deal comes to an end, just as he had been when Chelsea snapped him up.
However, the latest claims suggest that he has opted to head back to his native Brazil. As per Brazilian outlet Globo Esporte [Via Sport Witness], the defender has "reached an agreement" to return to former club Fluminense, who he made 97 appearances for before heading to AC Milan back in 2009. This comes after reports a couple of weeks ago claimed a verbal pact was in place, so it appears a full agreement has now been cemented from that.
It is added that though an agreement has been reached and officials have been sent to "work on the announcement", nothing will be made official until the end of the season as a "sign of respect" for both Chelsea and Silva, something that the player demanded in negotiations. However, it appears that his next destination will be home.