Chelsea have confirmed the departures of forwards Radamel Falcao and Alexandre Pato at the end of their loan deals, while goalkeeper Marco Amelia will also leave Stamford Bridge.
Falcao joined the Blues on a season-long deal from Monaco last summer following a temporary spell at Manchester United, but the 30-year-old Colombia international struggled to make an impact with just 12 appearances as he was hampered by injury setbacks.
Pato was signed from Corinthians in January but the Brazilian also had fitness issues and made only two first-team appearances under interim manager Guus Hiddink.
Italian Amelia, 34, was signed by Chelsea on a short-term contract in October to provide cover for then injured goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
A statement published on Chelsea’s official website on Friday morning read: “With contracts having come to an end, we today say farewell to three players who were part of the squad during last season – Falcao, Pato and Marco Amelia.
“Chelsea Football Club thanks the players for their contributions and wishes them success in the future.”
New manager Antonio Conte is set to take up his role at Stamford Bridge when Italy’s Euro 2016 campaign ends.
He is already working on replacements for Falcao and Pato up front with the Blues close to securing the £33m transfer of Belgium striker Michy Batshuayi from Marseille after the 22-year-old passed a medical.
Chelsea this week also announced new scholars for the 2016/2017 season, who include midfielder Juan Familia-Castillo, who joins the club from Ajax where he captained the U16 side as well as representing the Netherlands.
Source: ESPN
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