Chelsea want to pay off Ross Barkley to leave the club

Ross Barkley could be paid off to make way for Anthony Gordon (Picture: Getty)

Chelsea want to pay Ross Barkley to leave the club, according to reports.

The 28-year-old attacking midfielder has yet to make an appearance for the Blues this season.

Barkley joined Chelsea from Everton in 2018 for £15m but has failed to make a significant impact at Stamford Bridge, scoring 12 goals across 100 games.

He spent the 2020-21 season out on loan at Aston Villa and returned to west London last term, but only made 14 appearances across all competitions.

With Chelsea looking to sign Anthony Gordon from Everton, The Sun are reporting that the Blues may look to terminate Barkley’s contract to free up space.

Barkley, who took part in Chelsea’s pre-season tour last month, has a year remaining on his current deal and his reported salary is £200k a week.

Meanwhile, Paul Merson has told Gordon to ‘go with his heart’ as he considers leaving Everton to join Chelsea.

Anthony Gordon scored for Everton on Saturday as they drew 1-1 at Brentford (Picture: Getty)

Thomas Tuchel’s side are prepared to pay around £60m for the 21-year-old who is reportedly open to joining Chelsea as he wants to play in the Champions League.

‘This transfer window is going to be a hard one for Anthony Gordon,’ Merson told Sportskeeda. ‘He’s Everton’s superstar, in a sense, and he’s got his head turned.

‘I think he’ll leave for Chelsea tomorrow morning if he has the chance. But I don’t think he’d play for them anywhere near as often as he could for Everton.

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‘Anthony Gordon’s a hero at Everton. He’ll play every week, and he’ll be a big fish in a small pond. Will he go to Chelsea to sit on the bench and not play?

‘On the other hand, he’d probably earn triple the wages at Chelsea. If he turns the move down, will he ever get another chance to play for them? This is an incredibly difficult decision. Don’t go by the money, go with your heart.’

Chelsea are back in action on Tuesday night when they travel to Southampton following two wins, a draw and a defeat from their opening four matches.

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