Twelve Signings, £243m Spent – What Is Going On At Chelsea?

Chelsea are dominating another transfer window.
This will be the third successive summer transfer window since the 2022 takeover by co-controlling owners Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly when Chelsea have outspent rivals, signed the most players and looked to offload those from the former regime.

A flurry of Friday transfer activity, including a £54m deal to sign Wolves forward Neto, means Chelsea look set to make 12 summer signings with an average age of under 21, spending £243m since June 14 and bulking up their squad to more than 50 senior players.

Some of those who have joined will go straight back out on loan and more will be sold before the 30 August transfer window deadline.

But many fans are wondering if this is one of the biggest Premier League squads ever assembled.
Since the Clearlake Capital and Boehly takeover, Chelsea have spent more than £1.5bn on transfers, increasingly with a younger profile aimed at future re-sale value, apparently stockpiling potential.

BBC Sport attempts to break it all down.

Who is in Chelsea’s squad?

Goalkeepers (8)

Filip Jorgensen, 22, signed for £21m; Robert Sanchez, 26, £25m; Djordje Petrovic, 24, £14m (available on loan); Kepa Arrizabalaga, 29, £72m* (for sale); Marcus Bettinelli, 32, free*; Mike Penders, 19, £17m (on loan) not yet confirmed; Gabriel Slonina, 20, £9m (available on loan); Lucas Bergstrom, 21, undisclosed* (for sale/loan).

Full-backs (7)

Reece James, right, 24, academy; Marc Cucurella, left, 26, £62m; Ben Chilwell, left, 27, £45m*; Renato Veiga, left, 12, £12m; Malo Gusto, 21, right, £30m; Josh Acheampong, right, 18, academy; Caleb Wiley, left, 19, £9m (on loan).
Centre-backs (9)
Axel Disasi, 26, £39m; Wesley Fofana, 23, £75m; Levi Colwill, 21, academy; Tosin Adarabioyo, 26, free; Benoit Badiashile, 23, £33m; Trevoh Chalobah, 25, academy (for sale); Aaron Anselmino, 19, £16 (on loan); Alfie Gilchrist, 20, academy (on loan); Bashir Humphreys, 21, academy (for sale/loan).

Midfielders (15)

Enzo Fernandez, 23, £107m; Moises Caicedo, 22, £115m; Christopher Nkunku, 26, £52m; Omari Kellyman, 19, £19m; Cesare Casadei, 21, £17m; Lesley Ugochukwu, 20, £23m; Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, 25, £30m; Romeo Lavia, 20, £53m; Carney Chukwuemeka, 20, £20m; Tino Anjorin, 22, academy (available for sale/loan); Andrey Santos, 20, £18m (on loan); Kendry Paez, 17, £17m (on loan); Alex Matos, 19, free; Jimi Tauriainen, 20, undisclosed* (available on loan); Leo Castledine, 18, academy (available on loan).

Wingers (9)

Mykhailo Mudryk, left, 23, £89m; Raheem Sterling, left, 29, £48m; Pedro Neto, left, 24, £54m (not confirmed); Cole Palmer, right, 22, £43m; Noni Madueke, right, 22, £29m; Estaevo Willian, right, 17, £51m (on loan); Angelo Gabriel, right, 19, £13m (available on loan); Harvey Vale, 20, academy (for sale/loan); Diego Moreira, 20, free.

Strikers (8)

Romelu Lukaku, 31, £100m*; Nicolas Jackson, 23, £32m; Samu Omorodion, 20, £35m (not confirmed); David Datro Fofana, 21, £11m (for sale); Deivid Washington, 19, £17m; Marc Guiu, 18, £5m; Mason Burstow, 21, £1.5m* (for sale/loan); Armando Broja, 22, academy (for sale).
Total, including loanees: 56

*Players signed under previous owner Roman Abramovich.
What could Chelsea’s starting XI be?

Starting XI: Sanchez; James, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Lavia, Fernandez; Palmer, Nkunku, Neto.
Second XI: Jorgensen; Gusto, W Fofana, Badiashile, Veiga; Ugochukwu, Dewsbury-Hall, Chukwuemeka; Madueke, Jackson, Sterling.

Not in either XI: Omorodion, Mudryk, Kellyman, Disasi, Chalobah, Chilwell.

Is there a Premier League squad size limit?
Chelsea will have to submit a 25-man squad after the summer transfer window which must have a minimum of eight ‘homegrown’ players – those of any nationality who have spent three years at any English club academy before turning 21.

But a club can also register as many under-21 players as they like on top of that 25-man squad.

What happens next?

Chelsea had such a bloated squad of more than 40 players under Graham Potter that reports emerged of first-team squad members sitting on the floor during team meetings and changing for training in the corridor.

This summer they will do fewer transfers both in and out than last summer under Mauricio Pochettino – but it remains more than any other club in the Premier League.
At least 14 players will leave Chelsea’s group of the 56 listed above, which includes any player who has made his first-team debut for the Blues or his national team.

From the outside, there will be questions about why Chelsea sign so many players and why such young ones? The club insist it does not have a minimum age or wage to acquire players and judges each deal on an individual basis.

They believe they can bridge the gap on the top four with the current squad and begin pushing for major titles in the coming seasons.

But there is also an acceptance that this transfer window will only be a success if Chelsea can balance the books further by adding to the £90m for the three players sold so far, not including the Conor Gallagher deal that is likely to be confirmed in the coming days.
Meanwhile, rivals will also ask how Chelsea can keep spending amid such restrictive Premier League profit and sustainability rules (PSR).

Again, the Blues will point to player sales but have also effectively needed to sell two hotels – the Millennium and the Copthorne – to themselves for £77m, which is believed to have allowed them to remain compliant with PSR.

According to the Times,, external the Premier League is also reviewing changes to Chelsea women’s team’s ownership structure filed in their accounts on 28 June.

BBC