Players Chelsea should Sell
Players Chelsea should sell as Xabi Alonso faces his first big test
Three players Chelsea should sell this summer stand out immediately, and Xabi Alonso already knows their names. Chelsea, sitting ninth in the Premier League, appointed Alonso on a four-year deal after a season of drift, protest, and managerial chaos. The Spaniard inherits genuine talent in Moises Caicedo, Cole Palmer, and Joao Pedro, but he also inherits a wage bill bloated by players who simply have no place in the system he plans to build. Alonso likes intelligence, tactical discipline, and reliable technique. The players listed below offer none of those traits.
Liam Delap has never looked the part
Delap excelled at Ipswich in a team built on transitions, but Chelsea operate as a possession-oriented side that wants control, and the Englishman lacks the finesse to link play at the centre of the attack. He arrives at every training session looking the part physically, yet the Premier League’s sharper defensive lines read him far too easily.
The move to such a big club has come too early for Delap, and both parties should separate. Alonso built Leverkusen around strikers who could link, press, and think in tight spaces. Delap does none of those things convincingly enough, and selling him now, before his value drops further, remains the smartest call Chelsea can make.
Robert Sanchez continues to cost Chelsea dearly
Sanchez has the joint-most errors leading to goals in the entire Premier League, and he has caused countless nerve-wracking moments for supporters throughout this campaign. A manager of Alonso’s standard cannot begin a project with a goalkeeper who generates that kind of anxiety.
It is baffling that Sanchez remains at Chelsea, and they must sell him and bring in a new goalkeeper this summer. Alonso’s pressing systems demand a sweeper-keeper who distributes quickly and reads the game ahead of danger. Sanchez, frankly, cannot do that consistently enough at this level.
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Benoît Badiashile has exhausted every last chance
The once-highly regarded ex-Monaco centre-back failed to earn the trust of Enzo Maresca, with much of his action last season limited to the Conference League, and fitness setbacks have consistently prevented him from building any real rhythm. Chelsea currently have 10 senior central defenders on their books, and with Levi Colwill returning to full fitness, they are genuinely over-subscribed in that area.
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Badiashile represents dead money, a player signed with enormous promise who never adapted to the pace and physicality of English football. Alonso needs defenders who can step out confidently, carry the ball through pressure, and hold a high line. Badiashile gives him none of that with any reliability. Cutting him loose frees up both wages and a squad place for someone who can actually do the job.