Forgotten Chelsea star Emerson says he wants to quit Blues and move to Lyon

Chelsea left-back Emerson Palmieri says he would be open to completing a permanent transfer to Lyon in the summer transfer window after getting regular game time in France

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Chelsea defender Emerson Palmieri has admitted he would “have no problem” with extending his stay with Lyon beyond the end of the season.

Emerson is on a season-long loan with the French side from Chelsea, where he remains under contract until June 2024. The Italian international has been a regular with Lyon this season, making 32 appearances so far across all competitions.

The 27-year-old has played 71 games for Chelsea since joining the club from Roma in January 2018 on a four-and-a-half-year deal worth £17.6million, plus £7m in add-ons. But he has struggled to make his mark for the Blues and was linked with Napoli and Lazio before eventually joining Lyon for the season after the Ligue 1 side agreed to pay a £1m loan fee.

He now says he is happy where he is, opening up the possibility of a summer transfer. "Of course, yes, I have no problem saying that I can stay at Lyon,” he said at a press conference on Tuesday. It's a pleasure to be here. There are different factors. It's not just up to me. There are six matches left to play and after that I will have an answer for you all."

Emerson’s loan from Chelsea has a clause which gives Lyon a priority purchase option in the summer transfer window. Whether the Blues would be willing to sell the left-back, who was a part of Italy’s Euro 2020 winning side, remains to be seen.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Chelsea allowed Emerson to join Lyon permanently this summer? Comment below.

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He left Stamford Bridge at the start of the season after it became clear he was behind both Ben Chilwell and Marcos Alonso in the pecking order at left-back. However, Chilwell’s anterior cruciate ligament injury in his knee and a hamstring problem for Reece James left Chelsea considering a recall of Emerson in January.

“I don’t want to lie. We are looking into the situation because we have now a new situation with Ben Chilwell,” Thomas Tuchel said at the time. “One of the possibilities is a player we know and we love as a person, Emerson. But we need to check the details. We are discussing and reflecting and this will go on for the next days, maybe weeks.”

That return to Stamford Bridge never materialised and it seems that Emerson may therefore have played his final time in a Chelsea shirt.