Why Chelsea's January Transfer Window Strategy Endangers Their Champions League Hopes | OneFootball

Chelsea's January transfer window strategy, while sensible, left many scratching their heads.

Nobody expected it to be a busy January for Chelsea in the transfer market considering the billion plus dollars spent to overhaul the squad over the last two-and-a-half years. But after just one significant signing and a handful of departures, Enzo Maresca enters the decisive months of his first season in charge with more questions than answers regarding his squad.

Chelsea fell from second to sixth in the Premier League in a span of six weeks, before a hard-fought 2–1 win against West Ham United saw them climb back to fourth. The win was only Chelsea's second in their last eight league games, with unconvincing performances highlighting the turn of the year.

The issues exposed over the last 45 days had fans calling for reinforcements in the transfer window to help the team return to form in the fight for a Champions League spot next season. These calls went mostly unanswered. The recall of center back Trevoh Chalobah from his loan at Crystal Palace to cover the injuries of Benoît Badiashile and Wesley Fofana was Chelsea's only major move of the month. For many, though, more should've been done and the move is also an indictment on the club's decisions during the 2024 summer window.

Chalobah was frozen out by Maresca last summer, stripped of his shirt number and left to look for a move elsewhere in search of playing time. The injuries offer a valid excuse, but Chalobah's return six months later can also be seen as an acknowledgement of questionable squad planning. Axel Disasi, who Maresca opted to keep over Chalobah, was loaned out on deadline day to Aston Villa, who are competing with Chelsea for the Champions League places.

The shining example of Chelsea's questionable squad planning during the summer of 2024 is João Félix. Bought for $56 million and given a seven year contract last summer, Félix started just three league games and was loaned out to AC Milan on transfer deadline day only six months later. The arrival of the Portugal international also halted the growth of Carney Chukwuemeka, who also left on loan to Borussia Dortmund looking to get his career back on track. With their departures, Cole Palmer is Chelsea's only natural attacking midfielder left in the squad

Palmer isn't the only player lacking suitable cover. Chelsea also disregarded the thought of recalling midfielders Andrey Santos—who's shining for Chelsea's sister club, Strasbourg— or Lesley Ogochukwu, to offer an alternative to Moisés Caicedo and Enzo Fernández. Caicedo has played the most minutes of any Chelsea player this season and both him and Fernández have looked fatigued late in games recently. Romeo Lavia's constant injuries and Cesare Casadei's transfer to Torino during the last week of the window made recalling one of their loaned out midfielders seem worthy of consideration.

Chelsea opted not to, instead, they bought 19-year-old French midfielder, Mathis Amougou for a $15.6 million fee. However, reports indicate the plan is for him to get loaned out to Strasbourg in the summer once Santos returns, making it unlikely that he plays a significant role in the remaining 14 Premier League games. An injury to either Caicedo or Fernández could seriously hinder Chelsea with summer signing, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who's played just 133 league minutes this season, currently the only remaining midfield alternative at Maresca's disposal.

Chelsea's focus during January appeared to be centered on exploring the market for wingers, given the uncertainty surrounding Mykhailo Mudryk's situation. The club was linked to Alejandro Garnacho and Mathys Tel, but ended up deciding against making a move for either. After rumors placed Christopher Nkunku in Manchester United and Bayern Munich's orbit, the Frenchman stayed put and played on the left wing in his second half cameo vs. West Ham. Maresca has repeatedly said he doesn't see Nkunku as a striker, but that leads to another problem.

Nicolas Jackson's promising start to his sophomore season at Stamford Bridge has hit a wall, with the Senegalese striker failing to score in his last eight appearances. Going after a high-end striker in January would've surely taken a significant economic effort, which raises questions over Chelsea's inability to get deals for now thriving center forwards, Jhon Durán and Samu Omorodion, over the line last summer.

If Jackson's slump continues or he misses any time in the coming months and Maresca insists on not playing Nkunku as a center forward, then 19-year-old summer signing, Marc Guiu, and the currently injured David Datro Fofana —who was just recalled from loan— are the remaining strikers Maresca could turn to. Although Guiu has impressed with six goals in the UEFA Conference League, he's played only 71 Premier League minutes for Chelsea.

On the topic of the Conference League, Maresca heavily rotated his squad during the league phase, giving players who struggled to get minutes in the league an avenue to playing time whilst also offering rest to Premier League regulars. When the knockout phase of the competition begins in March, Maresca won't have the luxury of a "B team" given the recent departures, further stressing the fitness of his Premier League regulars during the final months of the campaign. Summer signing, Renato Veiga, who played every minute of the league phase, also left on loan to Juventus during the January window.

It's clear Chelsea are thinking long term rather than looking for immediate answers that can help them this season. The team will likely address the holes in the squad during the upcoming summer window and that's unquestionably the sensible thing to do financially. However, it's also true that the decision taken by co-sporting directors, Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, to not bring in more reinforcements could risk Chelsea missing out on Champions League soccer next season.

Although Chelsea were wise not to panic-buy players for more than they're worth during January, it's hard to argue the squad is weaker than at the start of 2025. With no more incoming or departing pieces before the end of the season, it's up to Maresca and his crop of current players to secure Chelsea's first Champions League birth since 2022-23.