Chelsea transfer window rated - Joao Pedro superb, Facundo Buonanotte mind-boggling
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Jack Heath
Thu 4 September 2025 18:15, UK
Chelsea have been ruthless in their transfer business this summer but were all their moves were excellent ones or short-sighted decisions?
The Blues have been one of the most active clubs in the transfer window once again, capable of bringing in and shipping off players with efficiency and mercilessness.
Enzo Maresca is perhaps one of the luckiest managers in the world who has a constant revolving door of fresh talent every transfer period to give him the resources he needs.
Football Insider takes a look at the monster haul for Chelsea although warning: it is going to be a long one courtesy of Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
Credit: Imago
For those living under a rock, the French club managed by Liam Rosenior is Chelsea’s partner club with the two teams frequently exchanging players.
Ben Chilwell’s deadline day move from Chelsea to Strasbourg caught the eye after the former Leicester left-back struggled to force his way back into Maresca’s first team following bouts of niggling injuries.
The Englishman now has an opportunity to play regular football again and potentially make a late surge to make Thomas Tuchel‘s squad for the World Cup.
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Mamadou Sarr may be a loan that will come back to bite the Blues considering their lack of centre-back options, or so the Italian manager says.
Big things in the future are expected from massive keeper Mike Penders and Ecuadorian talent Kendry Paez, who will look to translate regular football in Ligue 1 into solidifying their profiles after similar turns from Djordje Petrovic and Andrey Santos last term.
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Similarly, the west London outfit struck up close ties with German giants Borussia Dortmund as they sold Aston Villa academy product Carney Chukwuemeka for a decent fee after he spent the back end of last season on loan with Dortmund.
The Englishman looked unlikely to ever force his way into the Chelsea starting XI after injury halted his development so the move is a commendable one, if slightly disappointing.
Aaron Anselmino will also be able to get some much needed game time in Germany, considering it is probably too early for the Argentine to start at the back for the Blues.
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I’m sorry if any Burnley fans are reading this article but Chelsea have managed to pull off a hit-and-run by dumping three of their unwanted stars for hefty fees.
Lesley Ugochukwu has shown talent but is stuck behind too many big names so was sold for around £1.4million profit (Sofascore) after joining from Rennes back in August 2023, whilst injury-prone Armando Broja was bizarrely bought by the Clarets.
I’m not sure if Scott Parker had any control over the signing of these players but, quite frankly, this is sensational business by the Blues to offload useless players in their project.
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Kepa Arrizabalaga impressed on-loan at Bournemouth last season yet his performances were not enough to tempt Maresca to promote the Spaniard to first-choice keeper after Robert Sanchez’s turbulent 2024-25 campaign.
The sale was an odd choice as I genuinely felt the former Athletic Club shot stopper could have had a go at knocking Sanchez off his perch, even if he has had two cracks at the job already.
Noni Madueke’s move from Chelsea to Arsenal was a fascinating one, given the Englishman had barely been in west London before he was sold.
Considering the outrageous array of wingers at the Italian’s disposal, getting nearly £50m for the former PSV man looks to be an excellent bit of business.
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Bournemouth underwent a drastic revamp of their squad with Dorde Petrovic the new number one at the Vitality Stadium.
Once again, praise has to heaped on the negotiation skills of the Blues who drove a hard price for the Serbian and even more profit.
Apart from being a regular in Chelsea’s UEFA Conference League winning side, the Englishman hardly was involved in proceedings at Stamford Bridge.
For the player, the move to Everton is an excellent choice as he will be one of the key men for David Moyes.
For the Blues, it was always an odd signing in the first place as they have to take a loss on approximately £10m, ouch.
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I feel really bad for Alfie Gilchrist as he looked like a really promising young talent for the Blues.
Gilchrist received interest from four Championship clubs including Watford and Derby with West Brom winning the battle for his signature.
The move is beneficial for him but is a worrying symptom of Boehly’s preference to prioritise external talent and selling homegrown players.
When the deal was announced, a season-long loan to Sunderland seemed an excellent location for the Spaniard to develop his game.
However, only three games into the Premier League campaign, Liam Delap’s hamstring injury forced the west London outfit to recall Marc Guiu from his loan before it had really begun.
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The injury news to Delap caused pandemonium amongst the Chelsea hierarchy as they scrambled to bring the originally unwanted Senegalese striker back to Stamford Bridge after touching down in Munich.
Nicolas Jackson and his agent strictly refused to come back, demanding a deal be sorted with the Bavarians for his services after being tossed out by Maresca.
This was an incredible piece of business by the Blues as the German champions are set to buy the 24-year-old for £56.2m at the end of the season, totalling £70.5m with the loan fee (BBC Sport).
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The Frenchman has been a major disappointment at Stamford Bridge since his arrival in the summer of 2023 from RB Leipzig.
The 27-year-old has struggled for game time due to injuries and poor form, so you have to applaud the club for securing a deal to sell the striker to AC Milan.
Indeed, the Blues did lose around £20m on the original transfer fee paid, but it is better to cut your losses rather than holding on to a player who has contributed little to the team.
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Once promised as a future centre-back for Chelsea, the Portuguese has now been let go off by the club.
Renato Veiga did reasonably well at Juventus on a short-term loan last season with the hope that he could break into the Blues first team for the 2025-26 campaign.
Even with the injury to Levi Colwill, the ex-Sporting CP man was not even given a shot to prove himself to Maresca as he will now play his football with a plucky Villarreal side.
It is a good move for the Portugal international, but I do think this was a short-sighted move by Chelsea to not keep him on longer, even for a decent short-term profit.
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Arguably one of the most bizarre cases in football who has jumped around some of the biggest clubs in Europe without making a splash, the west London side finally got the 25-year-old off their books.
Having bought Joao Felix in August 2024 for £43.1m, the Blues suffered a minor loss in the grand scheme of things as the striker was one of the biggest flops to put on a Chelsea shirt, with add-ons expected to take the eventual fee somewhere close to the break-even mark.
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Little is known about these youngsters but the one to keep a close eye on is Paez who was bought for an absolute bargain.
The Ecuador international is one of the critical players in an impressive golden generation for the Tricolor and could be a prominent Chelsea midfielder alongside or in front of compatriot Moises Caicedo in the future.
At just 19-years-old, the Dutchman is a long-term buy who perfectly fits the Chelsea transfer philosophy.
He is being bedded in slowly at Stamford Bridge but could most definitely be a player who will feature heavily moving forward.
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I always found this move a bizarre one considering Delap is not a typical Maresca striker, preferring to hold up the ball instead of run in behind.
Amid interest from Everton and Man United, the Englishman opted to choose the Blues where he now faces competition from Joao Pedro, and his hamstring injury will have badly damaged his chances of winning that battle.
Undoubtedly, the ex-Ipswich forward has potential and shown some quality so far, but I just don’t see Stamford Bridge being his home for the long-term.
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The 18-year-old has delighted fans thus far with his electric pace and close quarter dribbling.
Certainly, the Brazilian has an extremely high ceiling and will hopefully prove more than just another number of the high turnover rate under Maresca.
The Blues’ obsession with wingers continues as they finally sealed the deal for Man United’s unwanted man Alejandro Garnacho.
The Argentine has endured a few turbulent seasons at Old Trafford and now has the opportunity to turn his career around at Stamford Bridge.
I don’t fully buy the transfer but time will tell to see if the United academy graduate can prove to his new employer that they made the right decision, or whether it was one born out of spying a future opportunity to profit in a future window.
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When I saw this transfer happen, I didn’t really understand why the young Englishman was leaving Germany with guaranteed minutes to become a rotation option at Chelsea.
The 21-year-old has notched just 89 minutes in three games this season and for me is a complete waste of money given the plethora of wide players already available.
The Blues appear to have found the ideal potent striker to take the club’s goal scoring to the next level in the form of the Brazilian.
Pedro has already netted twice in three Premier League games including two assists, highlighting the 23-year-old is one of the most promising talents to come out of South America.
He also played a key role instantly during the Club World Cup as he scored three times across the semi-final and final as Maresca’s men completed a major triumph in winning the competition.
Short and sweet: the Argentine left Brighton for west London just to see no game time, already not being selected for the Champions League squad after stating he wanted to play top-tier European football.
Perhaps the most ridiculous loan in Premier League history as the Blues once again proved they can’t resist raiding the Amex.