Chelsea coach Frank Lampard confirms Chelsea plans to extend Willian, Giroud and Pedro’s contracts until the end of season.
Chelsea players: Willian, Pedro and Giroud. Photo credit – 247 News
Lampard told Chelsea’s website: “We have big players in that position so that’s obviously something I’m looking at very carefully.
“The ones out of contract here have been great servants for the club and actually have a lot of feeling for the club, but of course they will be concerned about themselves in terms of how they are now, and if pre-season is rushed they’ll want to make sure they’re alright.
“So it’s going to have to be something we look at.
“Hopefully we can have that arrangement so they can stay with us because if we play again I would love the squad to look as it’s looked all season, but we’ll have to see how that works.”
The trio are out of contract in June, but with the Premier League now not likely to finish until the end of July, the Blues boss needs to take quick action to ensure he still had a full squad.
The fact that all three play in attacking roles compounded the issue as Blues paid the price for not bringing anyone in immediately in the January transfer window.
Giroud is also likely to leave having seen his chance of first-team starting spots severely restricted. Willian is set to move to Spurs in the summer. Pedro has been linked with a return to Spain. The trio’s contracts were all due to end on June 30.
Out of the three, there is a strong chance that Willian will refuse to extend the contract by another month or two.
All three players will risk a long-term injury by playing in Chelsea’s final matches, which could see them missing out on a lucrative deal elsewhere.
At 33 (Giroud), 32 (Pedro) and 31 (Willian), the players will speak to their agents before agreeing an extension which will be seen by many as a huge risk.
French striker Giroud will surely only have two years left at the top level. Willian has spoken of his desire to make the switch across London to rejoin his old boss Jose Mourinho at Spurs.
Lamps faces a fight to keep them and could well go into the last nine Prem matches with only Callum Hudson-Odoi, Tammy Abraham and Michy Batshuayi as his options in attack.
Blues players are set to return to training next week after the coronavirus shutdown.
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