Six players have joined the Chelsea roster so far during the January transfer window, which has already been a month of significant upheaval. Todd Boehly is looking to add more players to Graham Potter’s squad, so they may not be done yet....CONTINUE READING
The attacking line has been strengthened by the additions of Mykhailo Mudryk, Joao Felix, and Noni Madueke, while Monaco’s Benoit Badiashile has already made an impact with two straight clean sheets.
Additionally agreeing to transfer to Stamford Bridge are Andrey Santos and David Datro Fofana, who will give the team players for the future. The team’s viability does, however, come into doubt given the significant number of new players.
Chelsea will play Borussia Dortmund twice in February to open their Champions League season.
They must submit an updated squad list for the knockout stage of the competition before these two games, but they are only allowed to make a small number of adjustments from the group stage.
For UEFA competitions, there is a “B” list as well as a “A” list. The A list, which includes players born on or after January 1, 2001, who have been eligible to play for the club for at least two years since their 15th birthday, is limited to 25 players, while the B list, which includes players born on or after that date, is allowed to have an unlimited number of players.
In the group stages, Lewis Hall, Charlie Webster, and Armando Broja were all “B” list players.
Chelsea only named 24 players on their “A” list, leaving them with one group stage spot to fill. They would have to eliminate two more players in order to deploy a full complement of three fresh players in the knockout stages.
Datro Fofana and Andrey Santos are the most likely contenders to be left out of the squad given their lack of experience at that level.
As clubs are only allowed to designate a minimum of two goalkeepers, one alternative, albeit improbable, would be to remove one of their three goalkeepers off the list.
It seems doubtful that Potter would risk having only one goalkeeper available should another injury or suspension occur, even though Edouard Mendy is presently out with a broken finger.
Mudryk, who cost £88 million and was purchased from Shakhtar Donetsk, seems to have the best chance of making the team out of the new additions. In his debut against Liverpool, the attacker had an immediate impact and gave off a threatening impression.
Felix’s red card against Fulham on his debut means that he won’t play again for the Blues until at least February 11, four days before the first leg against Borussia Dortmund.
Potter must decide whether to arrest another attacker in order to bring in Hakim Ziyech and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang because of the uncertainty surrounding their futures.
It’s possible to argue for both Madueke and Badiashile to be the third player added to the group stage roster. Just 22 goals have been scored by Chelsea’s offense in 20 games this season in the Premier League.
At Stamford Bridge, Badiashile has made a great start, but Wesley Fofana is poised to make his injury comeback for the Blues.
Fofana cost £70 million to buy from Leicester in the summer, but he has only played four times for the team. It doesn’t seem realistic that Potter would take someone off the “A” list in order to add another center-back as he has been there since the start of the season.
Kalidou Koulibaly’s recent drop in performance can make him vulnerable if the manager decides Badiashile is a better fit for the club.
