If there is any club where squad numbers could be a bit of a mystery at the moment, it’s Chelsea.
After the huge influx of purchases last summer and in January 2023, the opposite has happened in the summer of 2023. Loads of senior players have been sold by Chelsea as they look to trim the wage bill and general squad size, partly for Financial Fair Play but also for sporting reasons.
There were simply too many of them last season and they are still selling actively.
It has not all been sales, as some players have come through the door at Chelsea, so there could be loads of different squad numbers compared to last season.
As it stands, here are Chelsea’s squad numbers for the 2023/24 campaign.
It seems Chelsea are very aware that there is business to come in both directions as they haven’t given squad numbers to any new signings or returning loanees just yet, meaning plenty of digits are up for grabs.
Squad numbers subject to change during pre-season.
|
Squad Number |
Player |
|---|---|
|
1 |
Kepa Arrizabalaga |
|
4 |
Benoit Badiashile |
|
5 |
Enzo Fernandez |
|
6 |
Thiago Silva |
|
9 |
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang |
|
10 |
Christian Pulisic |
|
13 |
Marcus Bettinelli |
|
14 |
Trevoh Chalobah |
|
15 |
Mykhailo Mudryk |
|
17 |
Raheem Sterling |
|
18 |
Armando Broja |
|
21 |
Ben Chilwell |
|
22 |
Hakim Ziyech |
|
23 |
Conor Gallgher |
|
24 |
Reece James |
|
27 |
David Datro Fofana |
|
30 |
Carney Chukwuemeka |
|
31 |
Noni Madueke |
|
32 |
Marc Cucurella |
|
33 |
Wesley Fofana |
|
36 |
Gabriel Slonina |
Players without squad numbers: Ethan Ampadu, Levi Colwill, Malo Gusto, Baba Rahman, Malang Sarr, Tino Anjorin, Lewis Hall, Andrey Santos, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Nicolas Jackson, Romelu Lukaku, Diego Moreira, Christopher Nkunku.
Basically, most of them. There’s a huge amount of numbers available for new players and more could become available very soon. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Christian Pulisic hold nine and ten but both could leave, particularly Pulisic.
More numbers than just these are available, but here are the ones you would expect Chelsea to fill before they take to the field.
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The rules when it comes to Premier League shirt numbers are pretty relaxed, as any number between one and 99 is allowed as long as it is unique within the squad. There are traditions at play, as it is generally expected that numbers 1-30 will be taken up by first-team players.
Man City youngster Rico Lewis holds the record for the highest number in Premier League history, turning out in the number 82. It is also traditional for goalkeepers to wear between 1-13, but not a rule. The number zero is not allowed.
Premier League players are only allowed to change their squad number during pre-season or if one is sold or loaned to another club in the January transfer window.
Clubs must submit their confirmed squad list – including shirt numbers – by a specified deadline each year and numbers cannot be changed thereafter. In 2021 that deadline was 1 September.
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On this edition of Son of Chelsea, part of the 90min podcast network, Daniel Childs reacts to the latest Chelsea news, including Cesar Azpilicueta’s emotional farewell, who will take over as captain and talks for Moises Caicedo. If you can’t see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
