Chelsea

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea still have 40 senior professionals on their books, so Xabi Alonso was forced to leave out a host of players for Saturday's friendly win over Real Sociedad.

Nicolas Jackson, Liam Delap, Mykhailo Mudryk, Tosin Adarabioyo and Mamadou Sarr were all omitted despite featuring in previous pre-season matches.

All are either available for transfer or attracting loan or permanent interest. Mudryk and Sarr are targeting Premier League loan moves, Jackson is available for £65m, Delap for £50m, while Tosin has interest from Benfica and Marseille.

Alonso did not hold a media conference to explain his team selection, but multiple sources said it was his decision to leave them out.

New signings Emmanuel Emegha, Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson, along with recalled loanee Aaron Anselmino, were also absent, potentially through injury.

Unlike the likes of Delap and Mudryk, these four were sitting near the squad just behind the bench alongside third-choice goalkeeper Teddy Sharman-Lowe.

There was further intrigue as Fernandez played, while new midfield signing Valentin Barco, who joined from Strasbourg, did not get on the pitch for his first appearance.

It remains a significant challenge for Chelsea to trim their squad, with the club still needing to offload at least 15 players and only 17 days remaining in the transfer window to get down to 25 players.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

It took Morgan Rogers only seven minutes to score his first goal in a Chelsea shirt in Saturday's 3-1 friendly win over Real Sociedad as he reacted quickest after Alex Remiro saved Joao Pedro's initial header.

The £117m club record signing from Aston Villa initially looked sharp and linked well with Cole Palmer and Pedro in Chelsea's front three.

Within 10 minutes of his debut, supporters were already chanting his name.

However, it was understandable that Rogers faded as the match wore on, given he had trained for less than a week since returning from holiday before his 62-minute outing.

Beyond Rogers, Joao Pedro has been the star of Chelsea's pre-season.

In this outing he headed Chelsea back in front in the 47th minute before adding a side-footed finish 30 minutes later to seal victory after Sociedad had equalised just before half-time through Jon Mikel Aramburu's volley.

Chelsea lost control towards the end of the first half and looked vulnerable, but they were much improved after the break.

Joao Pedro has scored eight goals in seven pre-season matches and led the line with Rogers and Palmer operating behind him.

Alonso offered a glimpse of the 3-4-2-1 formation he could use at Fulham in Chelsea's Premier League opener as he took charge of a match at Stamford Bridge for the first time.

It featured Robert Sanchez as the first-choice goalkeeper, with Wesley Fofana, new signing Maxence Lacroix and Levi Colwill forming a back three - from right to left.

Pedro Neto operated at right wing-back and Marco Palestra on the left, while captain Reece James and Moises Caicedo lined up in midfield behind the front three.

There was also a debut from substitute wing-back Pep Chavarria, although a number of notable players were absent.

Of course, Alonso insists he won't be wedded to either a back three or four but it was this system used as Chelsea beat AC Milan 3-0 a week ago.

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Xabi Alonso managed at Stamford Bridge for the first time as Chelsea concluded their pre-season with a 3-1 over his former side Real Sociedad.

Record-breaking summer signing Morgan Rogers opened the scoring from coose range before Jon Aramburu leveled with a fine strike from the edge of the box on the stroke of half-time.

Joao Pedro put the Blues back in front just after the break with a back post header from a Reece James cross before the games' major talking point.

Substitute Enzo Fernandez was booed by sections of the crowd with Chelsea set to keep the midfielder after no club elected to reach their £120m valuation before Friday's deadline.

Pedro made the win safe late on with a fine finish across the goalkeeper after being played through by Malo Gusto.

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea finished 10th in the Premier League 10 years ago but incredibly were champions of England just a year later under new manager Antonio Conte.

After finishing in the same position last season, with no European football again and a new manager in Xabi Alonso, can the Blues repeat the feat?

Chelsea's Premier League record in 2025-26 is almost identical to when they finished mid-table under interim manager Guus Hiddink a decade ago.

With just one more goal scored and one more conceded, they finished with the same goal difference and just two points more than they did in 2015-16.

Few would have imagined back then that after finishing 31 points behind champions Leicester City and below the likes of Southampton, West Ham and Stoke, Chelsea's players would be the ones lifting the Premier League trophy the following season.

After starting the campaign playing a back four, a 3-0 defeat at Arsenal in just their sixth game saw Conte switch his side to a back three. The impact was tremendous as they won their next 13 games in a row.

It's a tactical switch that the Blues could make this season as well under new manager Alonso, given that his Bayer Leverkusen side won the Bundesliga unbeaten in 2023-24 playing three at the back.

Improving the club's points tally by a whopping 43 points again is undoubtedly a huge ask for Alonso's squad, given that it is the biggest points increase that any side has achieved to win the title in Premier League history.

But they may not need to.

While Arsenal will likely mount a stronger title defence than Leicester City, the Gunners' points tally last season was the second-lowest to win the Premier League since Claudio Ranieri's side 10 years ago.

The bar to become champions has dropped in the last couple of seasons from the dizzying demands of the Guardiola-Klopp era - where even 97 points wasn't enough in 2018-19 - so Chelsea might not need to reach the 93 points they achieved under Conte.

Read the full article here

Emlyn Begley
BBC Sport journalist

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Chelsea set a deadline of Friday at 17:00 BST for offers for Manchester City target Enzo Fernandez, who they value at £120m.

The potential move would see the Argentina midfielder link up again with new City boss Enzo Maresca, who was formerly his manager at Chelsea.

A potential deal for Fernandez relies on City selling Rodri, officially the best player at the 2026 World Cup among numerous other accolades, to Barcelona. City are not planning to sign Fernandez if he stays.

The defensive midfielder has been a crucial part of City's success in recent years, helping them win the 2022-23 Treble - including scoring the winner in the Champions League final against Inter Milan.

The 30-year-old has played 298 times, lifting a total of four league titles, plus several cups - and winning the Ballon d'Or.

Rodri wants to return to his native Spain and join Barcelona - with Real Madrid having dropped out of the chase - and City are asking for 80m euros (£68.4m).

But Barca's opening bid for a player out of contract next summer was only £38.5m.

BBC Sport's chief football news reporter Simon Stone says the Rodri and Fernandez deals happening are dependent on each other - but do not need to go through at the same time.

If City knew Rodri was going it would enable them to make a bid for Fernandez.

And it is possible he could even sign before Rodri is ready to play again after a minor back procedure.

Maresca is clearly a huge fan of Fernandez, having made him Chelsea captain when Reece James was injured.

And he played the Argentine in 79 of his 92 games in charge.

Fernandez is by nature a defensive midfielder - but Maresca played him further forward many times last season when Cole Palmer was injured - leading to him scoring a career-best 15 goals.

That means there are several places Fernandez could fit into Maresca's City team.

Read more about a potentially pivotal day here

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea are in talks with Strasbourg over a permanent move for Omari Kellyman.

The 20-year-old remains highly regarded at Stamford Bridge, but a transfer that includes a buy-back clause is being viewed as a way to aid his development after an injury-hit period following his £19m move from Aston Villa in 2024.

Kellyman completed last season on loan at Cardiff City without injury, but his minutes had to be carefully managed after a series of hamstring problems since leaving Villa Park.

Strasbourg, also owned by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital through parent company BlueCo, are seen as a club where Kellyman can take the next step in his development after a series of setbacks.

It would be the latest of more than a dozen moves between the clubs since BlueCo bought Strasbourg in 2023, a year after acquiring Chelsea.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Xabi Alonso has picked his strongest XI for three of his five matches during pre-season, and all three featured Wesley Fofana.

However, Chelsea have signed Maxence Lacroix and have nine centre-backs on their books. In addition, the club also has a group of players it considers "untouchable", meaning they are not for sale - but Fofana does not feature on that list.

When this was put to Fofana, he replied: "Yes we have a lot, I think there are nine or 10. Everyone needs to be good, to train well and after the manager takes the decision. It's like this for everyone.

"Maybe some guys will leave, others will come again. For myself, it is about training well, trying to be fit and we will see what the manager does. If the club tells me they don't need me anymore, it is like this. Of course I will be sad, but this is football. You can't say 'I have my place and I am sure to play'."

It seems unlikely Fofana will leave and, indeed, he wants to stay and believes in a positive future for Chelsea.

He is among the players who have been convinced by assurances from the sporting directors and board about a change of direction, embodied by the signings of senior players Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck.

Fofana says the duo, aged 36 and 35 respectively, "know how to win big games", will be "important in training sessions" and may give one or two players "a kicking" if they are slacking.

However, he believes managerial stability under Alonso will define whether Chelsea succeed or not.

"I think everyone knows we need stability," he adds. "We talked last season with the directors and they said the same thing. They think the same way as the players. We need stability."

Read the full article here

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea have accepted a loan offer from Napoli for defender Benoit Badiashile, with an option to buy.

The two-time France international, 25, has permission to travel to Italy to complete a move worth an initial £2.6m loan fee, with a potential £850,000 in add-ons.

In addition, the Serie A club will have the option to buy Badiashile for £23.1m next summer.

The deal represents a compromise on the £30m asking price set by Chelsea earlier in this transfer window.

However, the centre-back has been earmarked for a sale throughout the summer after struggling to cement his place at Stamford Bridge, and was among the players not training under new manager Xabi Alonso.

Badiashile has suffered a number of injuries since joining Chelsea for £32.7m in 2023.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Wesley Fofana shed tears, faced criticism for laughing at the wrong moment and exposed racist abuse last season - but now he believes stability will lead to an "amazing" Chelsea future.

The 25-year-old centre-back has been a controversial figure because of the difficulties he has faced since his £75m move from Leicester City in 2022.

However, he is also a survivor. He is the last remaining signing from that summer and, following Marc Cucurella's move to Real Madrid, Chelsea's longest-serving player aside from academy graduate Reece James.

"Football is like this. It moves fast, but it is a good stat," said Fofana. "For me, some years were difficult, but now I'm back. I'm playing, I'm fit."

Fofana is right to be optimistic.

He is young, featured heavily under new manager Xabi Alonso in pre-season, and fit and healthy after injury troubles in recent seasons.

Fofana reiterates it was his "dream" to join Chelsea, the club he supported as a boy growing up in Marseille, through his admiration for the Blues' former striker Didier Drogba.

Chelsea finished 10th in the Premier League last season and failed to win a trophy.

Fofana was arguably the fall guy for many supporters, not helped by footage of him laughing on the bench during a heavy Champions League defeat by Paris St-Germain in March.

He said it was not as significant as some made out and that those inside the club "know my mentality", but added: "When the team is not doing well, we need to find someone [to blame]. I can accept that.

"The club bought me for a very big transfer [fee]. I came with the ambition to be the best in my position and to help the team. So, when things go badly, I accept being the guy [people blame]."

Fofana, a Muslim whose father is from Ivory Coast, was racially abused on Instagram last season. He also highlighted abuse in March 2025.

He says it hurts to see those messages, but he will never stop calling it out.

"It is not a big thing to expose people who do that," he said. "For me, it is very important. For me and other players, we need to show what people are saying.

"We need to educate people. I think the people behind Instagram need to work on that. I exposed this on Instagram and Twitter [now called X] because I think they need to be more aware and more conscious of this problem."

Having received such abuse from a young age he is prepared to continue speaking out, even if it leads to criticism of his own character.

Read more on Fofana's Chelsea career so far here

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We asked you what the best outcome is for Chelsea and Enzo Fernandez this summer.

The Blues have set a Friday deadline for offers of £120m or more from clubs interested in the midfielder.

Here are some of your comments:

Dougie: As a Chelsea fan, the best outcome is we sell Fernandez. He doesn't want to be at the club anymore and we don't want anyone who thinks like that. We have more than enough cover already.

Ausso: If Manchester City actually cough up the £120m asking price we should take the money and run! He's not worth that.

Mike: Get rid of Fernandez, whatever the cost!

Jez: I think he should go - he has not only disgraced himself in the World Cup but has openly looked for a move away from Chelsea. No player is bigger than the club so ship him out.

George: Whether he stays or goes, we win. He stays and we have a world-class proven midfielder, he goes and we get rid of a potential bad apple and replace him with Martin Zubimendi. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

Bob: The best outcome for the team is that Chelsea stand by their guns and sell only if their valuation is met. The player was happy enough with his wages when he signed for the club, he should stay and play.

Andrew: Fernandez should go, but only if Chelsea get a decent price for him. He's been poorly advised by his agent Javier Pastore who thought he was clever enough to manufacture a move to Real Madrid and now has left his client in a really difficult position. I'd be happy for him to stay a Chelsea, he's still a great player, but firing Pastore may be needed to show that he's committed to the club.

Neev: I want Enzo Fernandez to stay as he was a key part of the team last year, but if he wants to leave, Chelsea should target Fabian Ruiz or Alex Scott.