Chelsea are set to exercise the option to recall Nathan Aké from his loan deal at Bournemouth. Antonio Conte said on Friday that he was evaluating the Dutchman’s situation and Eddie Howe, the Bournemouth manager, says he expects Aké to be recalled by his parent club.
Aké, who signed a new five-year deal with the London club in 2015, arrived at Bournemouth on a season-long loan from Chelsea in June and has since made 12 appearances in all competitions for the club. “It looks like that will be the case that they will call him back, it’s not 100% finalised yet,” Howe said, speaking to the BBC, after his side’s 3-0 FA Cup third-round defeat at Millwall. “That would be a huge blow for us and with Nathan going back our defensive resources would be stretched. It would be a huge blow to us as he’s done so well.”
Howe is already without the Bournemouth captain, Simon Francis, through suspension, for the next two matches while centre-back Marc Wilson is an injury concern. Aké missed Bournemouth’s defeat at Millwall on Saturday and was one of 11 changes made by Howe from their Premier League draw against Arsenal.
“It’s easier said than done to say we are going to recruit a player in similar stature to Nathan and I’m not sure there’s too many out there,” Howe said. “So that’s going to be a difficult one for us but we will assess our options and try and make the right decisions.”
Aké, who spent last season on loan at Watford, was limited to substitute appearances until breaking into the Bournemouth team in November. Bournemouth travel to Hull City in the Premier League next Saturday before home matches against Watford and Crystal Palace. Chelsea take on Peterborough United in the FA Cup on Sunday before travelling to Leicester City next Saturday.
Kurt Zouma is expected to make his first start of the season on Sunday at Stamford Bridge but Aké could further boost Conte’s defensive options. The defender’s last appearance for Chelsea came against West Bromwich Albion in May 2015. “Aké is a really good player and now in the last five games he’s started to play with Bournemouth and is playing every game,” Conte said on Friday. “Honestly, I’m evaluating his situation, because Aké could be an interesting opportunity in this window, yes, for us.”
