Qatar's Al Sadd SC V UAE's Shabab Al Ahli Dubai FC - Qatar-UAE Super Shield Final
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Head Coach Thomas Tuchel with Cole Palmer of England
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United States v Portugal - International Friendly
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Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher
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Joao Pedro of Chelsea
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Troy Deeney delivers verdict Chelsea fans will absolutely love, ‘you should have kept me’
Reece James and Enzo Maresca celebrating with Club World Cup trophy
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We have graded some of Xabi Alonso's key roles at Chelsea so far. What grade would you give him and why?
Wey yestday machi is bat u are using 3 met fildes no 9 haw are u gonin to wen Ur machi, and u benchi good palys.
B- this is the first phase in a squad rebuild. It will take at least three windows to balance them team. Our defenders are shit and we need a backup striker
Joao pedro being out could genuinely ruin the season! His absence is being felt more than i thought It would be. As for Xabi, i always thought It would tale at least a season before we see the best of thim
“What a game for him and a moment he needed. A lot of pressure from the outside, including myself. Hasn’t shown up big this season, but against his former team and his former Chelsea manager as well.
“He said, ‘You know what, I am the man; you should have kept me around’. Scored two unbelievable goals, led the line, looked physically fitter and stronger. Maybe now that confidence comes through.”
Liam Delap’s record while Enzo Maresca was manager
After his arrival at Chelsea from Ipswich, Maresca once said about Delap: “He’s working hard off the ball and on the ball, understands the game and can score. I think he can be an important player for England.”
But Delap hardly got a chance under Maresca. He scored three goals in 47 appearances for Chelsea, but would only start 20 of those 47 games and completed 90 minutes on three occasions in a Blues shirt.
He played 19 times under Maresca, but was only given 12 starts as Maresca chopped and changed. By the time Joao Pedro got fit, the Brazilian was easily first choice and Delap was forced to feed off scraps.
Under Liam Rosenior, Delap was hardly used from the off and when he did, he was played wide right in a loss to Arsenal. Ultimately, Delap was not given a proper chance in a Chelsea shirt. Was that a mistake?
Chelsea sold Delap to Forest for £50m, but they actually valued the striker at £70m. Against Man City, he proved that he has the quality to be a £70m striker and meet Maresca’s prediction, win caps for England.
The 31 Chelsea players on international duty in November, including first Graham Potter call-up
Graham Potter, head coach of Sweden, is seen during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round Of 32 match between France and Sweden at New York New Jersey Stadium
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Chelsea have a total of 31 players on international duty during the November break, and below is a list of all of those on the books at Stamford Bridge, and when they will be in action.
Chelsea’s injury list is extensive at the moment, with Josh Acheampong the latest player to get injured. The defender missed the trip to Sunderland and has not been included in England’s U21 side this month.
Joao Pedro, Reece James, Maxence Lacroix, Jamie Gittens and other injured stars have not won a call-up, but Emi Martinez is one of three players selected by Argentina despite missing the defeat at Sunderland.
READ MORE: Wesley Fofana and Moises Caicedo clapped a Sunderland player off on Sunday
The 12 senior players in action for Chelsea during November
Morgan Rogers (England): England face Croatia and Spain in the last two of their Nations League games, but Rogers will not be joined by Cole Palmer. Steven Gerrard thinks Palmer and Tuchel have an issue.
Emi Martinez, Valentin Barco, Aaron Anselmino (Argentina): Anselmino is in line for his first cap after a surprise call-up, given he’s yet to play this season. Argentina face Uruguay and Costa Rica this month.
Geovany Quenda, Pedro Neto (Portugal): Like Anselmino, Quenda could win his first Portugal cap this month as he joins Neto in a Portugal side lacking Cristiano Ronaldo. They play Denmark and Wales.
We have graded some of Xabi Alonso's key roles at Chelsea so far. What grade would you give him and why?
Wey yestday machi is bat u are using 3 met fildes no 9 haw are u gonin to wen Ur machi, and u benchi good palys.
B- this is the first phase in a squad rebuild. It will take at least three windows to balance them team. Our defenders are shit and we need a backup striker
Joao pedro being out could genuinely ruin the season! His absence is being felt more than i thought It would be. As for Xabi, i always thought It would tale at least a season before we see the best of thim
Mike Penders, Romeo Lavia (Belgium): Lavia and Penders have enjoyed bouts of good form with the Blues since the last break. They will be pushing to start in Nations League games against Turkey and Italy.
Estevao (Brazil): Despite starting just one Premier League game all season, Estevao is included in a squad to face Japan and Singapore. Pedro misses out through injury for a second time, due to a thigh problem.
Marco Palestra (Italy): Palestra is back in the Italy squad and will be looking to add to his two caps, after missing the September break. He will be looking to help The Azzurri beat Penders and Lavia on Sunday.
Kendry Paez, Moises Caicedo (Ecuador): Costa Rica will take on Chelsea’s Argentine trio, but first, they will face Paez and Caicedo. Paez is with the CNG at the moment, but will also face Bolivia this month.
The 15 Chelsea players called up by England’s youth teams
England U21s: Tayo Subuloye, who is on the fringes of making a senior Chelsea debut, is included, while Jesse Derry and Shim Mheuka – on loan at Sporting and Celtic – will also face Czechia and Portugal U21s.
England U20s: Four Chelsea players have been included for games against Slovenia, Belarus and Austria. Freddy Bernal, Chizaram Ezenwata, Celtic’s Landon Emenalo and Wigan loanee Reggie Walsh are included.
England U19s: Five Chelsea players are in the 19s, facing Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland. Calvin Diakite, Gabriel Sambou, Mathis Eboue, Jashayde Greenwood and Ryan Kavuma-McQueen got the call.
England U18s: Three more are in the 18s. Reggie Walsh and Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli, after making their Chelsea debuts this season, are picked alongside Josh Henry. They face Montenegro, Poland and Ukraine.
The other Chelsea players picked to play during the break
Three senior players currently out on loan have also won call-ups. Filip Jorgensen is on fire at Strasbourg and is with Denmark’s squad. He will face Neto and Quenda’s Portugal, and Erling Haaland’s Norway.
Genesis Antwi, Jorgensen’s Strasbourg teammate, is in the Sweden squad for the first time, called up by Graham Potter. They host Bosnia before going to Poland, again, in their final two Nations League games.
Senegal are in the midst of their African Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, and Mamadou Sarr is in the squad after his questionable comments last week. Alongside Nicolas Jackson, Senegal face Sudan twice.
Finally, Scotland’s U19 side have included Alfie Osborne. He will come up against Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Belgium during the break, taking the overall total of Chelsea players on international duty to a huge 31.