Former Blackburn Rovers and Chelsea forward Chris Sutton says he hopes that Blues manager Antonio Conte keeps striker Michy Batshuayi this summer after an impressive end to the season.
The Belgian international has been heavily linked with a loan switch to West Ham in recent months, while Newcastle United are also believed to be looking at the forward.
Talking to the Daily Star about the 23 year old ahead of the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Arsenal, Sutton said he believes Batshuayi could be a valuable squad player next season when the club are involved in the Champions League:
“He’s an interesting one. If Chelsea are going to fight on all front they need to strength and depth. I’ve been impressed with him. I don’t know if he’s sulked privately, but it doesn’t seem that way publicly.”
“He’s come on in recent weeks and scored important goals. But if you’re him you want to play. It’s really interesting that Conte hasn’t had Europe to cope with this season so how will he next season? The demands are totally different.”
Batshuayi scored a vital winning goal against West Bromwich Albion to clinch the Premier League title for Chelsea, while he scored a quickfire double on the final day of the season in the 5-1 win over Sunderland after coming on as a substitute. Despite making only one Premier League start all season, the striker still managed to score five league goals, and nine in all competitions this campaign.
