Chelsea agree deal to sell Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Marseille

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Chelsea agree deal to sell Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Marseille

Chelsea have agreed a deal to sell striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Marseille on a free transfer, 90min understands.

Initial talks between the two clubs earlier this week saw Chelsea request a small fee in exchange for Aubameyang's services, with the Blues also determined to offload the entirety of the striker's sizeable wages.

Marseille were not prepared to pay a fee for the 34-year-old, however, forcing Chelsea into making a decision on Aubameyang's future.

Chelsea had hoped that Aubameyang would agree to a move to Saudi Arabia, where a transfer fee and full wage packet were on offer, but the 34-year-old rejected the proposal as he has always wanted to remain in Europe.

After making it clear that he would be prepared to see out the final year of his contract at Chelsea if he was not allowed to join Marseille this summer, Aubameyang has now been granted a free transfer.

Aware that they were never likely to recoup a significant fee for Aubameyang, Chelsea have prioritised offloading the striker's entire wage packet which, over the course of the remaining 12 months of his contract, would exceed the sort of transfer fees on offer in Europe.

The agreement represents another significant departure for Chelsea, whose mass squad clear-out is nearing its completion.

Romelu Lukaku, Hakim Ziyech and Callum Hudson-Odoi were all omitted from Mauricio Pochettino's pre-season squad to allow them to continue talks over summer sales.

Chelsea have already sold Kai Havertz, Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, Kalidou Koulibaly, Christian Pulisic, Edouard Mendy, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ethan Ampadu, as well as agreeing to the free departures of Cesar Azpilicueta, Baba Rahman, Tiemoue Bakayoko and now Aubameyang.