Bakayoko to extend Chelsea deal and move to Napoli

French central midfielder Tiemoué Bakayoko will complete a move to Napoli today, on loan without an option to buy from Chelsea.

According to Fabrizio Romano, “Tiemoué Bakayoko from Chelsea to Napoli is a done deal, confirmed. He’s just landed in Napoli to complete his medicals and sign his contract on loan until June 2021. No buy option”

Bakayoko already passed his medical with Gennaro Gattuso’s men on Sunday. To make this move possible without an option to buy, Bakayoko has agreed to extend his contract with Chelsea until June 2023, by 12 months.

Neither side opted to take up the purchase option included in the loan deal, although Milan had been linked with a possible move for Bakayoko this summer, which was addressed by the player himself. 

PSG had been interested in bringing the ex-Monaco man into their ranks, but ultimately opted for FC Porto’s Danilo Pereira in his position instead.

Having invested heavily into their team this summer, Chelsea are now desperate to offload players who either don’t have a place in Frank Lampard’s plans or simply aren’t happy with being there just for squad depth. Apart from Bakayoko, they are reportedly close to agreeing a deal which would see winger Callum Hudson-Odoi finally join Bayern Munich with the Bundesliga champions keen on his services for a long time.

But the France international had only a limited impact at Stamford Bridge, playing regularly in his first season in the Premier League under Antonio Conte before being declared surplus to requirements by his successor on the bench, fellow Italian Maurizio Sarri. 

As for Bakayoko, he failed to justify the £40 million spent on his signature in 2017, and was consequently sent out on loans for the last two seasons, first to AC Milan, and then AS Monaco. Milan are apparently keen to bring the 26-year-old midfielder back, but with no deal in place, they face competition from Paris Saint-Germain, and now Napoli as well.