Emerson Palmieri's 'Future Is in London,' Says Chelsea Defender's Agent

Emerson Palmieri is "happy" at Chelsea and will remain at the club into next season, his representative has confirmed. 

The left-back joined the Blues from Roma in January 2018, but he was handed just 279 minutes of Premier League action by manager Antonio Conte in the second half of the 2017-18 campaign.

Due to the presence of Marcos Alonso in the Chelsea squad, Emerson still only started seven of their 38 Premier League games in 2018-19.

However, the Italy international played in 11 of Chelsea's 15 games in their triumphant UEFA Europa League campaign, providing an assist for Olivier Giroud's opener as they beat Arsenal 4-1 in Wednesday's final (U.S. only):

Per Tuttomercatoweb (h/t Football Italia), despite links with a return to Serie A, Leonardo Cornacini, a representative for Emerson's agency Elenko Sports, has now confirmed the 24-year-old plans to stay at Stamford Bridge:

"He still has years left on his contract. He's happy and the club are happy to keep him. We're certain that his future is in London."

Emerson, whose current deal at Chelsea runs to 2022, will likely aim to make more Premier League appearances next term.

Alonso, 28, was first choice for much of the 2018-19 season, but he was dropped in favour of Emerson towards the end of the season as he struggled to cope with Sarri's rigid 4-3-3 formation.

As well as underwhelming defensively, Alonso's delivery into the box has been poorer than before:

There could well be an opportunity for Emerson to become Sarri's first-choice left-back next season if he can prove that he is the more reliable option.