Malang Sarr's friends have admitted they are worried about the defender as he is enduring a very difficult time at Chelsea.
Sarr not in first-team picture at ChelseaSaw January move fall throughFriends are worried about himWHAT HAPPENED?
Sarr signed for Chelsea in 2020 but has not played a competitive game for the Blues in almost a year, becoming a forgotten man at Stamford Bridge. The 25-year-old saw a January transfer to Le Havre collapse on deadline day and he currently trains with the Under-21s after being excluded from the first-team squad. Sarr's friends have spoken about their concerns for the defender due to his difficult situation in west London.
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A source close to Sarr told The Athletic: “I have never seen him as low as this. This is the first time I have seen him like this. He tries to change his mental state, but it is hard when you are not playing. He is not in the first-team dressing room anymore, he is with the kids in the other building. He feels outside the group. He tries to hide his feelings, but I know him, what he is really feeling.
“He wants to play football and works hard for that. He is completely fit. But at the moment, he does not know where he is going to play. Friends and family go stay with him occasionally. It is important for him to have people around him.
“He loved playing under Tuchel. But some of the closest friends he made, like N’Golo Kante andMason Mount, have left. He goes to train because it is his job but I know he finds it very hard because any footballer who knows they are not going to play matches will find it difficult.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Sarr had looked set to seal a move to Le Havre in January only for the deal to collapse. There are differing accounts as to why the move did not go through, but Le Havre director Mathieu Bodmer has blamed Chelsea and claimed the Blues ended up blocking the deal.
He told French newspaper Paris Normandie: “What Chelsea did to Malang Sarr was disgraceful. With just a few details still to be worked out, they did a U-turn. They gave the youngster the go-ahead to travel, and a financial agreement had been reached for the 18 months of his remaining contract at Chelsea.
“However, on several occasions, they went back on their agreement, and then gave it again. And once the player had agreed to make a big effort, to come to us on a tiny salary, just to play football, they blocked him.
“Everything was OK, the contract had even been submitted to the league (LFP), but we never received Chelsea’s cancellation. In the end, they just told him he wouldn’t be leaving and they didn’t even answer the phone anymore.”
GettyWHAT NEXT FOR MALANG SARR?
Sarr will see out the season training with Chelsea's youngsters and could move in the summer transfer window if he can find a club and reach an agreement with the Blues. He still has a year remaining on his existing deal but sadly looks to have no chance of playing first-team football at Stamford Bridge as things stand.
