Massive Squad Bigger Than Expected? Chelsea Officially Shares First-Team Group Photo; Only 29 Players Present

On September 21, Chelsea recently released the team’s group photo for the 2024/25 season, directly dispelling rumors that the squad was excessively large.

During the just-concluded summer transfer window, Chelsea once again demonstrated its willingness to spend big, successfully bringing in players such as Pedro Neto, Joao Felix, Kieran, Philip Jorgensen, Mark Giu, Tosin Adarabioyo, and Jadon Sancho. Throughout the summer, there were persistent reports suggesting that Chelsea’s squad would swell to 40 players due to the significant investment by the club. However, these rumors have now been proven false, with Chelsea’s officially published 2024/25 season squad photo showing only 29 players on the team.

This news sparked a flurry of discussions on social media. One fan commented, “Turns out there are only 29 people; they said our squad was so big.” Another fan humorously added, “I heard we had 45 players, what a joke.” Still, another fan pointed out, “The media kept reporting Chelsea has 40 players, which is clearly not true.”

Currently, Chelsea has achieved 2 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss in the Premier League for the 2024/25 season, accumulating 7 points and ranking 8th in the league table, 5 points behind leaders Manchester City. This weekend, Chelsea will face West Ham United.

In the pre-match press conference, Chelsea manager Malesca expressed his views on the current state of the team: “It feels great every time we play, just like the last game. I try to stay calm and focus on what I can control, such as training and match preparation.”

“This is a team of very high caliber. However, our rankings in the past two seasons were 12th and 6th. If we want to reach higher goals, we must improve. The only way to do that is to focus on each game.”