Personal Terms Agreed, £80,000-A-Week Star Set For Chelsea Move, Announcement Imminent

Chelsea midfielder John Obi-Mikel has reportedly agreed a deal to make a switch to United Arab Emirates club AL Ain as he looks to rejuvenate his career where he has played a bit part role at Chelsea.

Recently his representative Babawo Mohammed spoke to AfricanFootball.com and said, “Mikel has agreed personal terms with Al Ain and it is now left for Chelsea and the Dubai club to agree on a transfer fee.”

“He has returned to England to communicate all these to Chelsea.”

“We just have to wait and see what Chelsea say in this regard.”

After eight years’ service, it could be deemed harsh that most Chelsea fans will happily see the back of Mikel.

Put simply, though, he hasn’t been good enough. Pre-Roman Abramovich, he may have cut it at Stamford Bridge, but with the level of player Chelsea fans have grown accustomed to in this past decade, Mikel has been way off the mark. It’s ironic that the manager who signed him all those years ago is now the one bringing down the axe on his Blues career, especially as he has played under a further seven managers during his time in West London.

Of those, four have been permanent and had ample transfer windows to offload Mikel. He’s probably survived in all that time for the same reasons he did last summer—through a sheer need of numbers.

Mikel has played the squad role impeccably, floating from manager to manager with that one principle in mind. With a decade at Chelsea approaching, it’s no longer something he can get by on.