30 Mar 2026 08:54:22
I think Badiashile, Tosin, Enzo, Delap, Jorgensen and Palmer will leave the club this summer.
Not all of these would be my choices to leave.
30 Mar 2026 09:53:49
Apparently Disasi is doing well at West Ham, so I certainly see him being sold. George is not getting many minutes at Everton, so he will likely come back, and Jackson is also likely to come back as well. Penders will almost certainly start the new season as our number 1 keeper, so one of Sanchez or Jorgensen will be off. As Liam prefers Jorgensen (as his decision to drop Sanchez in Paris proved), I think it will be Sanchez (unless Liam leaves). Guiu will almost certainly leave on loan. After that, it will all be about where we finish in the table, and who the gaffer is.
If we miss the Champions League, and Liam stays in charge, then expect the likes of Cucurella (did you see the way he looked at Liam after the Everton defeat?), Moises, Enzo, Joao Pedro et al to all want to jump ship. The top players and their agents can all see how far Liam is out of his depth, and it will be revolving doors unless the Sporting Directors come to their senses and appoint a new head coach to lead this hugely talented squad of players forward. The mismanagement of the Maresca situation is really biting the club.
30 Mar 2026 10:33:19
I think Tom is right about which players will leave. It would be a big blow to lose Enzo and Palmer. Equally worrying, is who might be brought in. Players like Enzo and Palmer want to play for top clubs who have ambitions on the pitch.
The days of us retaining and signing top players are over. The owners and hierarchy are either unwilling or unable to build a team to return to the top table. To some extent, they have been successful; they have turned us into Brighton.
30 Mar 2026 10:58:19
I assume that Chelsea have ambitions.
I look at other owners who have come in at other clubs and it has taken them several seasons to make their respective clubs trophy winners.
30 Mar 2026 11:08:01
You assume wrong, Tom - whatever the plan is, it certainly isn't competing at the top level. Dortmund in blue is how I look at us nowadays.
30 Mar 2026 11:08:11
I think the club already has a replacement for Palmer, plus a CF and RW joining us from Strasbourg and Sporting Lisbon in the summer.
Enzo leaving will give the club something different to think about. I personally don't think we have seen the best of Caicedo over the last few games because he is being asked by LR to play more as a DM. I think Caicedo is more of a Kante type player. So, what type of player in midfield does the club go for? Will it be a DM or a more creative type midfielder? That choice will be interesting to watch.
I mentioned a few days ago our interest in a young Swiss CH, or we might go for the lad at Bournemouth, who I think might be a free transfer.
I assume we will also sell Disasi, and I'm told Lamps has already asked about the loan availability of George.
I would also sell Gusto and keep Josh, but I expect that Josh is more of a CH and will probably go out on loan.
I would keep Delap, but his playing time might be limited, and I assume Guiu will be sold.
30 Mar 2026 11:14:58
If the club is successful, then the value of their investment increases. So, I doubt my assumption of our owners having ambitions is wrong!!
30 Mar 2026 11:25:09
The owners may have ambitions, but not a lot to do with football, of which they have limited knowledge. Someone described Chelsea as "a financial experiment by a hedge fund". Not far off the mark.
30 Mar 2026 11:37:58
I'm not sure how much experience other current owners of other clubs had before taking up the challenge of Premiership football club ownership.
As I said before, when I look at a lot of other club owners, it seems to be a common theme that it takes time for trophy success to be achieved.
I think the majority of fans chose our current owners as the preferred entity to take over from Ra.
Their CV was there for all to see, but if my memory serves me right, there was a time issue involved as well.
Anyway, I'm more interested in people's views about players leaving and potential players joining.
30 Mar 2026 12:02:48
You have created a lively debate, Tom, and all posters' views will differ, but the bottom line is our current owners have invested a lot of their own money in buying players. You don't splash £100 million on a single player if you don't have lofty ambitions of competing at the top table.
Fact. They might have got some of the recruitment wrong, but we still have a very good squad of players who just need the right coach, plus a few experienced top-level additions, and we are not far away at all.
30 Mar 2026 12:39:32
Greenaway, I doubt that it is "their own money".
30 Mar 2026 12:49:12
Jimbo, you are right, it is of course Clearlake's money, which is the company owned by Egghead, but either way it is his funds under management which are behind the purchases, and that is why he calls the shots and not Todd.
30 Mar 2026 13:05:13
I think the owners want success. However, in my opinion, they won't get it.
The continuing trading of buying and selling players, particularly if Ef, Cp and Jp leave.
The players we bring in will not be of the same standard.
30 Mar 2026 13:13:37
Bill, if Liam stays in charge, the whole squad will want to leave, along with most of the fanbase, the tea ladies and Stamford the Lion.
30 Mar 2026 13:58:50
Gladys can't leave. Offer her what she wants, maybe an SD role.
30 Mar 2026 14:05:51
Stamford is ambitious, and if he leaves, we are finished.
30 Mar 2026 15:03:13
I was rather hoping this would be a debate about people's views on transfers, incoming and outgoing, rather than trying to find another way of digging out the owners, but ho hum!!
30 Mar 2026 15:25:10
Think Enzo Diasi, Guiu Garnacho, Badiashile, Tosin, Jackson, Jorgenson will go, maybe Delap, I really hope not.
I would be surprised if Palmer is sold.
30 Mar 2026 15:28:46
Personally I don't have a problem with Enzo, Palmer or Pedro leaving, if they request a move. Other than Palmer, who set the world alight for 18 months, Enzo and Joao haven't done a lot to pull us out of the muck we're in. Joao has had a good run of form, but outside of those 6 weeks, he has mostly been missing in games. Tactics and service haven't helped him, for sure. Palmer is a shadow of the player he was. Injuries obviously don't help, but if we can get 130m now, and he isn't happy here, let someone else worry if he'll ever rediscover his spark.
We already have one of the brightest attacking talents coming in Quenda, and a much more physical forward in Emegha, who has experience playing alone up top. Unfortunately, both are now under injury clouds. We need to sort the defence out, but if Cucu also requested a transfer, I'd be happy to give Hato 6 months to prove his worth.
My preference, once the defence is sorted, would be to go all out for a player alongside Moises.
Someone who plays similar to him in that they can create with long balls, but is also defensively capable. Tonali seems available, although looks Manchester bound. The young lad at Barca, Bernal, looks very promising, but Barca aren't easy to deal with. Barco from Strasbourg seems a decent player, but tends to follow the ball rather than read the game. I think Santos will be an incredible player, if he can rediscover his Strasbourg form, and hopefully gets the second year bounce. The other player I'd make a priority would be Kenan Yildiz at Juve. He is absolute class, although I think he recently signed a new deal. His ability to dribble and create is outstanding, top drawer finishing, and he isn't the type to stand and watch when the ball is lost. He puts in huge shifts, and I think he could be a massive player for a decade for whoever snaps him up. I'd break the bank and spend 100-120m if possible, and especially if Enzo/Cole leave.
30 Mar 2026 16:03:13
Thanks, Seymns and Melbourne. Your constructive contribution is useful and informative.
Melbourne, I will have a look at the players you have suggested.
30 Mar 2026 16:54:30
Melbourne, I would have a problem about Enzo, Palmer and Pedro leaving; they are our top 3 goal scorers. Although I do believe Enzo and Palmer will go. I just wonder who you think would replace them. I understand what you say about Pedro; I am on the fence about him. I still don't see him as a No 9. However, he could get close to 20 PL goals this season.
Apart from the two players who will be registered with us in the summer, I don't see any of the other players you mentioned joining us.
Why would a promising player from Barca join us? I have never seen Yildiz, but he has great reviews and will be sought after by top clubs in Europe. I also do not agree with you about Santos; clearly, we see things differently. The first thing he needs to do is stay fit enough to get minutes on the pitch.
We shall see how things pan out in August.
31 Mar 2026 00:35:59
Just to be clear, Jimbo, I don't want Cole or Joao to be sold, nor do I think the club is even considering selling them. The only way I can see it happening is if they request a transfer.
Enzo is different as he is a mercenary. Making him vice captain was another mistake, in a long list of mistakes, as he was always going to want out, isn't an amazing bloke nor is he a great example for the young squad.
In terms of why would players join us, the obvious answer would be salary. If we don't qualify for CL things become trickier, but the allure of the PL and the money that comes with it is strong.
Andrey hasn't had an incredible season, although there have been some top performances sprinkled in. He was the second best midfielder in France last season, so I'm hoping he rediscovers that form.