#PLStories- Thomas Tuchel confirms Broja will return to Chelsea for pre-season #CHELSEAFC

CHELSEA manager Thomas Tuchel confirms Armando Broja will return to Blues so he can assess him in pre-season. The 20-year-old forward is set to head back to Stamford Bridge following the conclusion of his season-long loan at Saints next week. Broja could play his final game for the St Mary’s outfit this Sunday, when Saints travel to Leicester City for matchday 38 of the Premier League campaign. It was a successful start to Premier League life for Chelsea product Broja, scoring five goals by January of his first season while on loan at Saints. He has only scored one since but Ralph Hasenhuttl is still keen to keep the Albanian international at the club beyond his current loan deal. Tuchel, who led Chelsea to a Champions League win last year, confirmed that he wants to look at Broja and fellow loanee Conor Gallagher in pre-season. "They will come back for sure,” the German boss insisted, speaking ahead of their clash with Leicester tomorrow. “I want to have them in pre-season and we will decide in pre-season what goes on. It is heavily up to them and how they do." Broja, who spent last season on loan at Dutch Eredivisie side Vitesse Arnhem, marked his Saints debut with two goals in the EFL Cup at Newport County. He netted his first Premier League goal on his first league start, at home to Leeds United in October. His last notch in the league came during the comeback 3-2 win at Tottenham Hotspur in February. Towards the end of last month, Hasenhuttl said: “Let’s have a look what we do next season. "It is interesting that you know everything about Armando Broja. We will have definitely a good young group next season, however it looks. “At this moment it is not easy to negotiate with Chelsea. There is no question, and it is not surprising that I want him to stay here another year. I know this would be good for him.” The Daily Echo understands that Chelsea are now open for business and options can be discussed with the club and player.  A message from the Editor Thank you for reading this article - we appreciate your support in reading the Daily Echo. Subscribing to the Echo means you have unrestricted access to the latest news, features and Saints coverage - all with an advertising-light website. You will also have full access to Saintsplus, your new home for Southampton FC tactical analysis, features and much, much more. Don't take my word for it - subscribe here to see for yourself. Follow the latest breaking news in the Southampton area by joining our Facebook group - Southampton News - Breaking News and Incidents Follow the latest court and crime news on our dedicated Facebook group - Hampshire Court and Crime News