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Former Chelsea starlet 'to have contract terminated' after two games
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- Former Chelsea starlet 'to have contract terminated' after two games
Former Chelsea and Brighton starlet Tariq Lamptey is set to be released by Fiorentina following an injury-ravaged spell in Serie A .
The diminutive defender, still just 25, was once touted as the next big thing to come out of Chelsea's famed Cobham academy after he dazzled against Arsenal on his senior debut in 2019.
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With Frank Lampard in the dugout and both Marcos Alonso and Reece James injured , he came off the bench to make a 30-minute cameo as the Blues took a 2-1 win at the Emirates.
Ghana international Lamptey made a deadline day move to Brighton just 32 days later, snubbing the offer of a new contract , but struggled to live up to his billing on the south coast as he endured a run of injuries.
Tariq Lamptey wowed Chelsea fans on debut but left the club a month later (Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
He then joined Fiorentina last summer in a deal reported to be worth around €6million (£5.1m), signing a three-year contract, but his fortunes have not improved and he is now set to part ways with the Tuscan club.
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Per reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport, Lamptey and the club are close to agreeing a mutual termination of his contract.
His injury woes have not subsided in the least since moving to Italy, and have limited him to just two appearances in a purple shirt.
The full-back's debut, made off the bench in a home defeat by Napoli, lasted just four minutes, and he then ruptured his ACL 21 minutes into his first start, against Cesc Fabregas' Como.
Tariq Lamptey's move to Fiorentina has not gone to plan (Getty)
He has yet to return to the pitch since suffering that injury in late September, missing both legs of Fiorentina's Conference League quarter-final elimination by Crystal Palace , and is now set to become a free agent once again. It remains to be seen where he will ply his trade next season.
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Speaking after Lamptey's first-team Chelsea debut, Lampard was effusive in his praise of the youngster and implored him to extend his stay with the club.
"He's talking with the club and hopefully he feels a bit of love that we've parachuted him in," said Lampard of Lamptey.
"I'd seen him when I was doing my coaching badges and you do a lot of hours with the academy and youth team. I saw him train a lot and I know he has a different dimension as a right-sided wing-back.
"He has pace, a low centre of gravity and can go by people. Of course he wants to work on his end product and all the last bits."
Lamptey joined Graham Potter's Brighton barely a month later, though, going on to make 122 appearances for the Seagulls.
