Reports in Italy claim that Tiemoue Bakayoko is set to be sent back to Chelsea after AC Milan baulked at taking up their £35million option to sign him.

Bakayoko was sent out to the San Siro last summer to spend the season on loan with Milan after falling out of favour at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea had decided the former Monaco star did not match up to standards after they had splashed out £40m to sign him in 2017.

They agreed a fee with the Italian giants confident that he would be able to perform better in Serie A than he did in the Premier League.

But the 24-year-old has enjoyed a turbulent time in Milan and fell out with manager Gennaro Gattuso.

Italian publication Calciomercato say that Milan have no interest in keeping the French international at the club longer than they have to.

The report claims they do not think the fee they have agreed with Chelsea represents good value for money for a player who has struggled to produce his best form in Italy.

That means Bakayoko now faces having to return to Chelsea – a club who do not really want to keep him.

And now the Blues face the prospect of having to find a club willing to match their valuation and come up with the kind of wages that will tempt him to move.

Bakayoko is thought to be on a salary of £5million-a-year, and that kind of money coupled with a large transfer fee would be hard for a lot of interested parties to come up with, report The Sun.

So Chelsea may have to be willing to take a major hit on the money they paid to sign him if they are to move him on from the club.

It is highly unlikely that the Blues will want to keep him around the first team squad even though they face a ban on signing any new players this summer.