Chelsea left-back Ian Maatsen has had his contract extended by a year, keeping him with the Blues until 2025, per Standard Sport.
The young defender was in the final year of his contract at Stamford Bridge, and there were fears he could walk away for free, but the club has extended his deal by a year.
The extension buys Chelsea time to negotiate a new deal with Maatsen, who has reportedly rejected two offers from the club after getting only 83 minutes of Premier League playing time.
He returned from a promising loan spell with Burnley in the Championship last season. The Clarets submitted a £31 million bid to Chelsea this summer, which was accepted.
West Ham United are also interested, with David Moyes reportedly a fan of the diminutive full-back.
However, the 21-year-old decided to fight for his place at Chelsea. He impressed in pre-season and had every right to believe he would be an important part of manager Mauricio Pochettino’s plans.
He has only played a bit part role, but Pochettino has consistently turned to him from the bench.
Pochettino has played him in several positions across the pitch but barely in his natural position. Levi Colwill has been playing in the left-back spot.
With an expiring contract and barely any game time under his belt, cash-strapped Barcelona have been sniffing around Maatsen.
The Catalans can barely afford to spend money on signings and have settled for finding free agents to pick up.
Barcelona currently have Alejandro Balde and Marcos Alonso fighting for their left-back spot, but they have not been impressed by the latter and are open to letting him leave.
They were eyeing a move for Maatsen next summer, but they may have to look elsewhere now that Chelsea have extended his contract.
