A pair of Chelsea stars have today moved to clarify their respective positions at the club, amid rampant media speculation.
‘I don’t know’
The last 48 hours have seen reports surrounding the futures of a number of Chelsea’s players surface online.
Chief amongst these Blues stars have been Pedro Rodriguez and Emerson Palmieri.
Veteran wide-man Pedro has long been tipped to move on this summer, with the Spaniard’s contract at Stamford Bridge due to expire in June.
This resulted in what appeared to be confirmation on the part of the former Barcelona man earlier today that an exit from London was imminent.
Quotes attributed to Pedro from an interview with Cadena Ser suggested that he had already come to the decision to seek pastures new:
‘I’m terminating my contract, but right now it’s not the most important thing, nor have I stopped to think about it.’
The 32-year-old, however, has since moved to clarify his situation.
Speaking in an interview with Chelsea’s official website, Pedro assured that he was mistranslated, and is actually yet to discuss the possibility of renewing his contract with those in charge at Stamford Bridge:
‘As many people know, my contract is up in May. But I still haven’t spoken to the club about whether or not it will be renewed and whether I’ll carry on.’
LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 30: Pedro of Chelsea during the Premier League match between Chelsea FC and West Ham United at Stamford Bridge on November 30, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)
‘I’ve seen loads of messages from Chelsea fans saying goodbye and thanking me for the time I’ve spent here, which I appreciate, but I’d like to tell all the fans simply that my current contract is coming to an end but I still have to talk to the club.’
‘I don’t know whether I’ll keep playing here or not. That conversation is still to come. But I have not signed for any other club. I belong to Chelsea. I have a contract. My wish is to be able to stay here but obviously we don’t know what will happen. I have to speak to the club and let’s see what happens.’
‘The opposite of what was mentioned’
Emerson Palmieri, meanwhile, has also been forced into action on the back of what he has labelled as ‘fake news’.
Rumours in the media over recent days have hinted that Italian stopper Emerson is growing increasingly frustrated at Chelsea.
It was claimed that the 25-year-old is no longer enjoying Frank Lampard’s training methods, which, combined with his lack of game-time, was expected to see Emerson seek out a departure from the English capital this summer.
The attack-minded full-back, though, this evening took to his personal Instagram account to definitively shut down such claims:
‘The world is going through a really difficult moment [with the coronavirus pandemic] and there are journalists who want to spread fake news around to have content.’
‘I don’t speak too much, but here is my only and last statement regarding this news.’
‘I never said that and I think definitely the opposite of what was mentioned, without my knowledge.’
Quotes via Goal
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