Chelsea have reportedly made a decision on whether they are willing to sell Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to Aston Villa in January.
The former Leicester City man has only been a bit-part player under Enzo Maresca, who has settled on Romeo Lavia, Moises Caicedo and Cole Palmer as his preferred central trio.
Dewsbury-Hall has made 10 appearances for the Blues this term - scoring once in a 4-2 Conference League win over Gent - but he has often been overlooked for Premier League minutes.
In fact, the midfielder has been left out of the squad entirely for five of Chelsea's last six Premier League games, last appearing in the top flight in September's win over West Ham United.
Dewsbury-Hall still has a contract at Stamford Bridge until 2029, but the Englishman's lack of top-flight football has inevitably led to suggestions that he could be moved on almost immediately.
Chelsea 'to rebuff' Villa interest in Dewsbury-Hall
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Aston Villa are supposedly prepared to offer Dewsbury-Hall an escape route from West London in January, having done the same with left-back Ian Maatsen during the summer window.
However, Football Insider claims that the Blues are planning to reject any Lions bids that arrive for the midfielder given that they are competing with Villa for a top-four finish.
Six places separate Chelsea (third) and Aston Villa (ninth) in the Premier League table, but there is only one point between the two sides as the 2024-25 season approaches its halfway point.
As a result, Maresca's side do not want to bolster the ranks of a direct rival for European football midway through the campaign, and Dewsbury-Hall is apparently expected to earn more game time during the unrelenting winter schedule.
The 26-year-old is yet to make a Premier League start for the Blues, playing just 43 minutes across three substitute appearances and also being overlooked for a spot in the first XI for the recent 8-0 Conference League dismantling of FC Noah.
Could Chelsea sell any of their outcasts in January?
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Dewsbury-Hall is one of a plethora of Chelsea players in Maresca's apparent 'B' team, which starts cup and Conference League matches before making way for the big-hitters in the Premier League.
Other members of the second-string selection have unsurprisingly been linked with winter exits too, including Christopher Nkunku, reported to be on the radar of Manchester United.
Mykhaylo Mudryk could apparently be offered a surprise Premier League escape route too, but the report adds that the club are not intending to move any players on when the window reopens.
Having plentiful options for rotation has been key to Chelsea's unexpectedly strong start to the 2024-25 season, and the Blues are coincidentally next in action away to Dewsbury-Hall's former team Leicester on November 23 after the international break.
Ben Knapton
