Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Hakim Ziyech will not return to Chelsea as his loan move to Galatasaray is set to be made permanent.

Romano claims that the Turkish club have triggered and signed the ‘obligation to buy clause’ attached to his loan deal.

Chelsea have reportedly agreed to the deal as well which just about confirms Ziyech as the first departure of the summer.

“Hakim Ziyech will not return to Chelsea as he’s staying at Galatasaray on a permanent move,” Romano wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Obligation to buy clause, triggered and signed as Chelsea already sent a letter to Gala confirming the agreement.”

Ziyech took some time to settle in at Galatasaray but has won over fans with his recent performances.

Despite having not played a full 90 minutes since his return from an injury suffered while away on Africa Cup of Nations duty, Ziyech has demonstrated his dead-ball prowess.

Ziyech has scored four goals in his last four appearances and topped that up with an assist for good measure.

In his most recent Galatasaray outing, Ziyech netted a stunning long-range free kick and now seems to have moved on from his hard times at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea happy to be rid of winger, fee is nominal

Chelsea are set to get very little financial benefit from the deal with the additional payment coming from the Turkish club reportedly lower than the £4 million they paid to take him on loan.

However, Chelsea will at least get him off their wage bill and they also have at least one less unhappy player in their squad.

Ziyech was on £100,000 per week deal at Chelsea having joined the club from Ajax in 2020.

Chelsea are believed to have paid somewhere in the region of £35 million to bring the Morrocan to London.

Ziyech another Lampard flop

Ziyech is another in a litany of recent Chelsea signings that will go down as a flop, having been signed during the managerial reign of Frank Lampard.

He arrived in England after a stellar spell in the Dutch Eredivisie which saw him play 219 top-flight matches and score 79 goals and provide 97 assists.

Ziyech was a junior at Herenveen before earning himself moves to FC Twente and eventually Ajax.

His performances for Ajax in the 2019/20 Champions League motivated Chelsea to splash some serious cash to sign the winger.

In 107 matches for Chelsea, Ziyech scored 14 goals and registered 13 assists.