CHELSEA’S dismal last day defeat at Jattvibederland cost them European football next season.
It means the Blues face a cruel summer of fighting to keep stars like Enzo Fernandez and Cole Palmer.
Chelsea are facing a battle to hold onto Enzo Fernandez Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
Cole Palmer could also be handed a route out of Stamford Bridge Credit: Getty
And at the same time they will be fighting to get top dollar for a host of unwanted players who could otherwise end up in a new “bomb squad”.
Failure to qualify for any Uefa competition for the second time in four seasons under the current owners is a massive blow to Chelsea’s prestige and finances.
BlueCo bosses insist they do not need to cash in on crown jewels like Manchester City target Fernandez and top scorer Joao Pedro, who is attracting interest from Barcelona.
But even if the club’s finances are as secure as they claim, keeping unhappy, ambitious players at an underachieving club is tough.
Marc Cucurella, 27, said after the Champions League thrashing by Paris Saint-Germain that senior players felt “discouraged” by Chelsea’s inability to compete with the best.
And the Blues are now at least one season away from even playing in Europe’s top competition and regaining the £80million financial boost it gave during this campaign.
The club can point to the long-term contracts signed by the likes of Palmer, Fernandez, Pedro and Moises Caicedo.
But when push comes to shove, big-name players and their agents tend to get their way.
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Gift of the Xab
Chelsea chiefs will hope the appointment of Xabi Alonso as the new boss will persuade the stars he wants to stay, to stay.
With the title of “manager”, instead of head coach, Alonso is expected to be given more say over recruitment.
To reshape the team and revive the club, the Spaniard and the club not only require high-calibre signings, which will not come cheap.
They also need to get rid of the deadwood. To raise money for purchases and just to make room in the dressing room at the training ground.
According to Transfermarkt, Chelsea have a first-team squad of 31 players. With Geovany Quenda and Emmanuel Emegha arriving this summer, and probably Valentin Barco as well, there would be 34.
That is way too many for a club not competing in Europe. In 2024-25, Enzo Maresca used a second-string squad padded out with youngsters for the Conference League campaign.
Next season, there would be a lot of people hanging around the club’s Cobham base doing nothing.
And very few who have been involved in this disastrous campaign could feel hard done by if they ended up on the “For Sale” list.
From goalkeeper Robert Sanchez through to Liam Delap, there is at least an entire starting XI of players who are vulnerable.
To be fair to Chelsea bosses, they did a good job of selling players last summer.
Xabi Alonso has been appointed as Chelsea’s new boss Credit: EPA
Liam Delap could be put up for sale Credit: Getty
But this will be an even bigger challenge.
Other clubs know the Blues are more desperate to sell 12 months on, and so will drive a hard bargain.
Signing players on long deals is great for spreading the cost of transfers.
The flipside, however, is players who fail to make the grade are harder to sell because they do not decrease in value as quickly over the course of their contract.
Take Alejandro Garnacho, for instance.
Signed for £40m last summer on a seven-year deal, his value on Chelsea’s books is still more than £34m. It is hard to see anyone paying that much for him, let alone offering a price which would make a profit on the books.
The same applies to poor old Romeo Lavia, whose ongoing injury issues make it highly unlikely rival clubs will take a £30m-plus gamble on him staying fit.
If you look down the list of current valuations, other players will be easier sells.
Andrey Santos, Marc Guiu and even Nicolas Jackson could all generate decent profits.
Alonso and Chelsea have plenty of decisions to make. They will not want to offload all three central strikers – Jackson, Guiu and Delap – but two could well be on their way.
Nicolas Jackson spent the season on loan with Bayern Munich Credit: Getty
The striker is facing an uncertain future Credit: Getty
But a large number of Blues centre backs could be on the market.
Wesley Fofana is in the firing line after his poor season, along with Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo and Axel Disasi, back from his loan at West Ham.
Trevoh Chalobah also looks vulnerable, despite having been Chelsea’s most reliable centre back in terms of fitness and performance in the last season.
If the club struggles to sell other players, a £40m fee for him, as a graduate of the Academy, would be pure profit – just like the deals which saw Mason Mount and Conor Gallagher leave in previous summers.
Josh Acheampong, who had very little game time despite being so highly-rated, also falls into that category. As will winger Tyrique George, if Everton do not make his loan deal permanent.
So while Chelsea chiefs will be working hard to persuade their best players to give it a crack under new boss Alonso, they will also need to usher a large number out the door.
Axel Disasi is returning to Chelsea after a spell with West Ham Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
Alejandro Garnacho will be difficult to shift because of being on a long-term contract Credit: EPA
Will the club and Alonso come down hard on those who are not in his plans if they are still at Cobham when the squad returns from their pre-season tour of Australia and the Far East?
Maresca and the sporting directors had no hesitation in banishing unsold and unwanted players to the “bomb squad” last year.
The treatment of stars like Raheem Sterling and Disasi drew widespread criticism, not least from players’ union the PFA.
They and their fellow exiles trained and changed separately, and were not even allowed to eat with their former first-team colleagues.
Disasi infamously posted a photograph from inside their temporary accommodation.
Unless Chelsea can line up good deals quickly, Alonso could end up telling them: we’re going to need a bigger portakabin.
