Chelsea have a long summer of player sales ahead of them after dramatically splashing the cash in recent windows, and one of those tipped for a potential exit is youth product Trevoh Chalobah, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.
With Mateo Kovacic nearing a move to Premier League rivals Manchester City and N'Golo Kante seemingly the next big star to swap the English top-flight for the Saudi Pro League, the 23-year-old could be the another name to depart Stamford Bridge this summer.
Chalobah has been a Chelsea player since starting his youth career at the club in 2007, but with the uncertainty surrounding his future, he has been linked with a move to Inter Milan.
According to Football Insider, the Italian giants made initial enquiries about the possibility of a transfer for the 6 foot 4 defender back in January and have now moved things along by officially registering their interest with the West London club.
Despite spending his entire career thus far at the two-time European champions, the player himself is also 'keen to hold talks' with the blue side of Milan.
"He would be one of the names that I'd have on a list of potential exits, for sure," Jones recently told GIVEMESPORT before providing a further behind-the-scenes perspective from the club, he added:
"But I think that there are definitely people within the club that still admire him and think he is capable of playing at this level."
However, the Blues are in a place of relative strength with a potential deal, as Chalobah still has five years left to run on his £50k-per-week contract.
Internazionale could also be pulled into a bidding war over the player, as Brighton and Hove Albion have also been linked to the England youth international, who is currently valued at £33m by FootballTransfers.
By all accounts, it does sound like the defensive "monster" - as once hailed by football scout Jacek Kulig - is set to leave Stamford Bridge in the summer, but should he stay and fight?
The first major obstacle in his way is the sheer number of defenders at the club, the sort that have cost the board a significant amount of money.
Wesley Fofana, for example, cost £75m last summer, Benoit Badiashile cost £35m in January, and the struggling Kalidou Koulibaly even cost around £33m.
Beyond those big-money signings, you also have the evergreen Thiago Silva, who has probably been the team's best defender despite moving on a free.
So there is a lot of competition, but how has Chalobah fared against them when he's played?
WhoScored has given the youngster an average rating of 6.47 in the league this year, which is a lot lower than the aforementioned quartet - Silva sits on 7.07, Badiashile on 6.91, Fofana on 6.90 and even Koulibaly hits 6.83.
Unfortunately, with even the much-criticised Koulibaly achieving a higher average rating in the league this year, a regular starting spot for Chalobah seems unlikely heading into next season under Pochettino.
Ultimately, it looks like a move to Serie A might be what's best for both parties, with Fikayo Tomori a fine example of what could happen should he take the plunge.
Chelsea could, in turn, profit from a player who doesn't get much game time, and Chalobah himself can get another chance to earn regular first-team football.