Chelsea

Chelsea's Nathan Ake: 'I want to play games'

By Matt Law, Football Editor | 01 June 2017

Nathan Ake says that he will hold talks with Chelsea's technical director Michael Emenalo before making a decision on his future at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea defender Nathan Ake has revealed that he will hold talks with his club's technical director Michael Emenalo before deciding whether to leave Stamford Bridge once again this summer.

Ake joined Bournemouth on loan last summer, and the 22-year-old scored three times in 10 Premier League appearances for the Cherries before being recalled by Chelsea towards the end of the campaign.

The centre-back only started one league game after returning to Chelsea, however, and the Dutchman has admitted that he needs to be playing regular football at this stage of his career.

"The main thing for me is to play games," Ake told The Guardian. "Whether it is here, whether it is somewhere else, I don't know yet. I need to see what [Chelsea technical director] Michael [Emenalo] thinks. That's what we need to discuss and see where we go from there.

"When I was 17, 18, 19, you are happy you are going to be involved, or be on the bench, or get some minutes. But I think at my age now, you want to play a little bit more, also because I had a taste of it.

"Of course you also know this is a big club, so there will be big players and it's not easy to come into the team. I just need to see what is going to happen with Michael or the manager. We have to talk and see what is best."

Netherlands international Ake joined Chelsea from Feyenoord in 2011.