Portsmouth boost after transfer target left out of Premier League club's pre-season tour
Pompey target Tino Anjorin has been left out of Chelsea’s pre-season to America.
The Premier League giants have today announced their 28-man squad for the five-game tour, which kicks off against Wrexham in Santa Clara, California, on Wednesday.
However, new head coach Enzo Maresca hasn’t included Anjorin, whose Stamford Bridge future remains unclear as he enters the final 12 months of his contract.
Instead the 22-year-old is staying behind at Cobham, with Pompey continuing to monitor the situation.
The Blues have made no secret of their desire to bring Anjorin back to Fratton Park, following his loan stay in their League One title-winning campaign.
It is understood the attacking midfielder would also welcome a south-coast reunion, having enjoyed his season-long visit, albeit an arrangement decimated by injury.
In truth, Anjorin may not have expected to be involved in Chelsea’s American tour, which also includes matches against Celtic, Club America, Manchester City and Real Madrid.
Nonetheless, his absence is a clear indication of how the club see his future - and will offer encouragement to Pompey and other interested parties.
Anjorin made just 14 appearances and scored twice for John Mousinho’s men last season, with a hamstring injury sidelining him for more than four months.
Yet he did show encouraging glimpses of his talent and started two of the final three matches, including the title-winning victory over Barnsley in April.
He was also missing from Chelsea’s pre-season tour to America last summer, although that was in order to carry out rehabilitation following injury, staying behind with Armando Broja.
There is no suggestion the former England under-20 international’s latest absence is influenced by fitness issues, however. Instead, the obvious explanation is other players are far ahead in terms of first-team contention.
Any potential return to Fratton Park - either on loan or permanent - would hinge on whether Pompey feel they can manage Anjorin’s ongoing injury concerns to represent value for money.
In addition, his Chelsea wage is considerably out of the Blues’ reach and would require a significant pay drop, particularly for a permanent move.