has urged to give midfield duo Jorginho and N’Golo Kante new contracts to avoid losing the pair on a free next year.
Both players’ current deals at Stamford Bridge expire in the summer of 2023 and Tuchel wants to avoid a similar situation to that of Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger who are looking increasingly more likely to leave at the end of this season for nothing.
The club have so far failed to negotiate contract extensions for the two centre-backs and while nothing is set in stone yet, the defenders have already been courted by many top clubs around Europe including , , Bayern Munich and Juventus.
Chelsea, and by extension Tuchel, have been criticised for allowing the contract situation to play out like this and the German manager revealed in his pre-match press conference, ahead of Saturday’s game against Southampton, that he wants to prevent Jorginho and Kante from sharing the same fate.
He said: ‘Nobody wants that [contracts running out], absolutely. With important players, it’s a wish as a coach that we solve this in the summer any way.
‘That it’s clear where the journey is, what the decision is. Otherwise, we have the same talks about Antonio and Andreas, we just swap the names, we talk about it through winter.
‘Then comes January, the agents talk with clubs and the brother to the other — it would be nice if we can avoid it. But at the moment, it’s a bit difficult. Yes, this should be the target for all of us.’
Losing Christensen and Rudiger would leave Tuchel short at the back and Jorginho and Kante leaving too would be an equally bitter blow, especially considering how much the pair have contributed to the Blues’ success over the last six years.
The midfielders have made a combined 431 appearances for Chelsea, helping the club to win the Premier League, FA Cup, Champions League, Europa League, Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup.
They are also key members of their respective international sides, with 30-year-old Jorginho part of the Italy team that won the Euros last summer and 31-year-old Kante lifted the World Cup with France in 2018.
But any new deal for either player will likely not be fully addressed until Chelsea’s new owners are selected, with the four remaining bidders given till Thursday to submit their final offers.
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