The chatter flying around football is that Chelsea are heading for a transfer ban after it emerged Fifa has been investigating more than 100 of their deals involving foreign players under the age of 18.

A decision is expected imminently and should the gossip prove to be correct, then it will no doubt cause celebration among some of their rivals.

But it may not only be their opponents relishing the prospect of a ban, as there is a strong argument that it would be the best thing that could happen for Chelsea’s army of talented youngsters.

Indeed, when this columnist suggested to one agent with players at Chelsea’s academy that a transfer ban might be beneficial, the reply came back: “The longer, the better.”

Chelsea have been trying to find some sort of pathway from the academy to the first team for the past decade and a transfer suspension could clear the way amid signs that times may be changing at Stamford Bridge.

Callum Hudson-Odoi was stopped from moving to Bayern Munich in the final days of the January window, despite following the appalling advice to hand in a transfer request. From a business sense, there was only one decision for Chelsea to make and that was to cash in, take the money and move on. But there is a belief from the very top that Hudson-Odoi can become a star at the club, so they took a calculated gamble and called Bayern’s bluff.