Chelsea have been in a center back crisis pretty much since the 2025/26 season began, and it seems like literally everyone except for owner Todd Boehly and the club’s brass was in acknowledgment of that.
Former manager Enzo Maresca was pining for an established star central defender ever since Levi Colwill tore his ACL, and not only did Chelsea fail to sign that kind of a player for him, but his cries for a defender ended up costing him his job.
As Chelsea mull another big money move for a young prospect in Rennes center back Jeremy Jacquet, fans are frustrated with the current state of the defense and have quite a few bones to pick with some current underperformers.
Chelsea need to do the right thing here
According to a recent report from Nizaar Kinsella of BBC Sport, both Chelsea defenders Trevoh Chalobah and Tosin Adarabioyo are at a “crossroads” going into the summer and could be sold if they do not sign new deals.
Although most Chelsea fans are on board with Chalobah leaving since he is mediocre and inconsistent, his purple patch at the start of the season and overall improved play in 2025/26 make his decision less than 100 percent obvious.
But Tosin? Goodness gracious, Chelsea supporters would surely be happy to see the back of him sooner than later, and the fact that he is not a legitimate candidate to be sold is really a further indictment of how poor Chelsea are defensively that he is still necessary for depth.
A mistake from day one, Tosin was signed for free from Fulham and is yet another example for an elite club to realize that free agents are often only free for a reason.
A mid table defender in every sense of the word, Tosin’s supposed elite ball playing abilities have been good but nothing to truly write home about, while his actual defensive work is miles below what Chelsea expect from a starter.
Now, he is not the worst center back in the world and will have a strong career at a club on the level of the place he came from, Fulham, and that’s where Chelsea should be targeting a sale this summer.
But for Chelsea? Tosin is a borderline disaster. He won’t win you games, he won’t mark the best strikers out of the game, and he is a symbol of the mediocrity permeating half of an otherwise excellent Chelsea roster that remains out of true title contention.
Joe Soriano is the editor of The Trivela Effect and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2010. He’s led top digital communities like The Real Champs (Real Madrid) and has run sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. He also helped manage NFL Spin Zone and Daily DDT, covering the NFL and pro wrestling.