Chelsea are due a £4m payment from Fulham after Armando Broja again failed to make his loan club’s starting XI for this evening’s Premier League clash against Tottenham Hotspur.
The striker moved to Craven Cottage in January with a clause that said if he failed to start 60 per cent of their games Fulham would need to cough up an additional fee.
And Rodrigo Muniz, who has scored five goals in his past six games, has been preferred to Albania striker Broja versus Spurs - meaning the threshold can no longer be met.
Any boost to the Chelsea coffers will be welcomed ahead of a summer in which it is widely believed that they must sell some homegrown players if they are to make any new additions in the transfer market.
Ahead of this evening’s game Fulham boss Marco Silva admitted that the clause has had zero impact on his thinking around selecting teams - with Brazilian Muniz’s strong run of form making it an easy choice.
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“I am not going to talk about something that is confidential between the clubs,” Silva said. “But I don’t lose half a second thinking about it. I am here to take the decision about what is best for each game. If a player is in good shape and can help us win a match, that is the player that is going to be on the pitch. All the other things are not for me to think about.
“If Armando is not scoring goals or not playing right now it is because Rodrigo is playing better than him and being more decisive in matches - if you have a player who is scoring like Rodrigo is scoring.
“If Armando is a loan player, it makes no difference, if they show that they are better, they are going to play. What I want, always, is to put the best team on the pitch that gives me more chance to win the match.”
Armando Broja is yet to start for Fulham since his move at the end of the winter window. (Jed Leicester/REX/Shutterstock)Broja, 22, has had significant injury issues in the past two years. But it was hoped that the move to Chelsea’s nearest neighbours would see him kickstart his career.
However he has only made four substitute appearances for the Whites. Fulham sit 12th in the table before today’s game, four points behind Chelsea but with a game more played.
Mauricio Pochettino ’s side host Leicester City in an FA Cup quarter-final at Stamford Bridge tomorrow as they look to salvage something from a disappointing season.
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