Why Chelsea Players Could Be Banned from Champions League as New Problem Emerges
- Chelsea could be prevented from using their new players like Joao Pedro in the Champions League next season
- The Blues returned to the lucrative competition after finishing fourth in the Premier League behind Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City
- We take a look at where the problem is for the West London team and how they can correct it before the transfer window ends
Chelsea took another major step towards winning another major silverware after they qualified for the final of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Source: Getty Images
A João Pedro brace was enough to lift the Blues over Fluminense in the sweltering heat in New Jersey on Tuesday evening.
Enzo Maresca is now 90 minutes away from winning his second trophy as Chelsea's boss, only a few weeks after lifting the UEFA Conference League.
The Italian also guided Chelsea back to the Champions League after two seasons out, after they finished fourth in the Premier League.
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Why UEFA fined Chelsea
However, their anticipated return to the competition they have won twice before could be derailed after it emerged that some of their players could be banned from playing.
It was only last week that the club received a huge ban from UEFA for breaching its financial rules after their squad cost ratio exceeded 80%, as reported by BBC Sport.
Chelsea were fined £26.7m (KSh 4.9 billion), which could rise to £51.2m (KSh 9.4 billion) if they repeat the same mistake in the next four years.
Aston Villa, Barcelona and Lyon were also fined.
Why Chelsea players could be banned from Champions League
The immediate repercussion of these sanctions would be that Chelsea will be prevented from registering new players for the Champions League unless they have a positive transfer balance.
What this means is that Chelsea must sell more than it buys to be able to add new players to the 'List A' of UEFA's lists, as the Times reports.
The List A herein is the last list a club submitted to UEFA, which in Chelsea's case was in February when they updated their Conference League squad.
This list didn't have Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana, who were omitted at that time due to injury concerns.
The duo will therefore be treated as 'incoming' alongside the new players Chelsea have bought.
Which players will Chelsea need to sign?
The Blues have been busy, bringing in Liam Delap from Ipswich Town, Pedro from Brighton and Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund.
Alternatively, there are players who were bought a while back and sent back on loan. If they do not secure other loan moves, they'll need to be registered as well.
They include Andrey Santos, Dario Essugo and Estevao Willian.
Source: Getty Images
The problem is far from over for Chelsea as the players who left on loan like Raheem Sterling, Joao Felix, Renato Veiga and Djordje Petrovic still face uncertain futures at the club.
How Chelsea can register new players for Champions League
Simply put, sell players. Luckily for Chelsea, UEFA will accept amortised sales capped at five years.
For instance, Delap's £30 million fee will only be listed as £6 million over the course of the next five years.
So if you take into consideration all the amortised fees, Chelsea need to raise at least £60 million (KSh 11 billion) to be able to register new players.
Players Chelsea could sell
Trevoh Chalobah could be a player whose name could feature prominently once again in the transfer market.
The Blues could be forced to sell Chalobah, not because they want to, but out of circumstances.
The centre-back is an academy player and thus will give the club 100% profit compared to selling a player like Axel Disasi.
This also explains why the club sold Conor Gallagher and Mason Mount in previous seasons.
Other players on the out-tray include the returning loanees like Veiga, Felix and Sterling, while Noni Madueke is the subject of strong interest from Arsenal.
Clubs Chelsea could face in Champions League
In a separate report, the possible clubs Chelsea could face in the Champions League emerged.
The Blues will be in Pot 1 alongside other heavyweights like Real Madrid, PSG and Liverpool.
However, thanks to the new format, they will not be exempted from playing against teams in Pot 1.
Proofreading by Asher Omondi, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
