Chelsea have been characteristically busy in this summer’s transfer market as Enzo Maresca attempts to build upon a strong debut season in west London.
The Blues have, once again, signed an array of the brightest young talents from across the world, with their spending total just below the £250 million ($336 million) mark. Despite Maresca calling for the club to sign experienced heads last season, the oldest of their summer signings is João Pedro aged 23.
To facilitate another flurry of incomings, Chelsea have been busy selling peripheral figures. They have done an impressive job of recouping funds and have almost balanced the books on this summer’s spend, with nearly 20 departures having been finalised on either permanent or temporary deals.
However, Chelsea find themselves in a position where they must raise even more money through player sales before the transfer window slams shut to ensure they avoid punishment from UEFA ahead of the 2025–26 Champions League.
Chelsea were handed significant fines by UEFA in July after they had been found guilty of breaching the organisation’s rules over recent years. They were given a fine of £26.7 million ($35.9 million) for failing to comply with spending regulations and excessive squad costs, and they could yet be fined a further £60 million ($80.7 million) across the next four seasons if they break the rules again.
UEFA’s rules stipulate that clubs can only spend a maximum of 80% of their revenue on transfers and associated costs. Chelsea breached that squad cost rule and have subsequently agreed to UEFA-imposed sanctions for their squad registration in this year’s Champions League.
The punishment means Chelsea cannot register any new players for the upcoming Champions League league phase unless their transfer balance for List A is positive. List A refers to the main squad of players registered for the competition, consisting of a maximum of 25 players, at least two goalkeepers and a minimum of eight homegrown talents.
Any new players added to List A for the new season must therefore be accounted for by player sales, with a player’s wage and amortised transfer fee taken into consideration during the registration process.
It’s not clear exactly how much Chelsea need to raise before the transfer deadline to comply with UEFA rules, but it’s important to note that only players removed from last season’s Europa Conference League knockout squad will count towards balancing the books.
For example, the sales of João Félix, Armando Broja and Djordje Petrović don’t count as they were loaned out for the second half of last season and were not named in Chelsea’s most recent List A. Of the players sold this summer, only Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Mathis Amougou and Noni Madueke count towards the positive balance.
Given Chelsea will want to register new additions João Pedro, Jamie Gittens, Jorrel Hato, Jamie Gittens, Estêvão, Liam Delap, Dário Essugo and reportedly Alejandro Garnacho, they must focus on selling players who were in List A of their Conference League knockout squad last term.
Wesley Fofana and Roméo Lavia were omitted from List A last season due to injuries and will need to be registered, too. Thankfully for the Blues, Lavia can be added to List B, which is made up of players born after January 1, 2004 who, since their 15th birthday, have played for the club for an uninterrupted period of two years, or for three consecutive years with a maximum of one loan spell within the same association.
Given Chelsea must sell players who were in List A last term and considering they are trying to add another two fresh faces to their squad before the window shuts, they find themselves in an awkward and unforgiving position.
Clubs will be aware of Chelsea’s position in negotiations and the club itself doesn’t have an abundance of players who meet the UEFA criteria and could be easily sold.
Marc Guiu has been removed from the costs after joining Sunderland on loan, while Jadon Sancho is no longer with the club and Mykhailo Mudryk won’t be involved in Chelsea’s Champions League league phase campaign after failing a drugs test. Lucas Bergström has also left for Mallorca on a free transfer, clearing further room.
Of the remaining players in Chelsea’s Conference League knockout squad, Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku are the obvious routes to income. The former has a price tag of around £80 million ($107.5 million) and is attracting interest from Bayern Munich, Aston Villa and Newcastle United, while the latter is valued at around £45 million ($60.5 million) and is likely to leave before the deadline.
It’s slim pickings elsewhere, however, with Benoît Badiashile the only other realistic sale. However, with Levi Colwill’s long-term injury, the Blues may be reluctant to allow another centre back to leave.
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