Tiemoue Bakayoko hopes his association with Chelsea has come to a close, with the French midfielder eager to avoid returning to Stamford Bridge after securing a second loan at AC Milan.
The 27-year-old midfielder spent the 2018-19 campaign at San Siro, having failed to convince during a testing debut season in England following his £40 million move.
Bakayoko has since spent time with Monaco and Napoli, keeping him on 43 appearances for his parent club, and is now back in Italy on a two-year loan that includes an option to buy.
What has been said?
Bakayoko is determined to remain in Milan, telling reporters: "I hope to stay here even after these two years on loan, everyone knows how attached I am to this club that I consider my home.
"When you are at Milan you must always aim to the maximum, I will give my all to win as many trophies as possible. At this point in my career I need stability after all these loans, so I hope to stay at Milan for a long time. I will do everything possible to make that happen."
Could Bakayoko have returned earlier?
Having previously impressed with the Rossoneri, a return to Milan for Bakayoko had been speculated for some time.
No deal was ever done, but the France international is happy to finally be back in surroundings where he feels comfortable.
Asked if he had come close to sealing another deal in previous windows, Bakayoko said: "There have been negotiations, but I don’t know how close I was to getting back here. Now that’s not important, the most important thing is to be back here."