Chelsea

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We asked for your views on if manager Liam Rosenior is right to drop Enzo Fernandez. Could this decision have wider ramifications for the rest of Chelsea's season?

Here are some of your comments:

Kazuki: Yes, unfortunately it is a right call. However good he is as a player, his attitude towards his own benefit wouldn't do any good for the club. Chelsea needs a class.

Dell: Definitely wrong to "sanction" Enzo. I doubt if he would have been involved in the Port Vale game anyway. We need all the fit players to be available for the Man City game. Yet again petty politics from petty owners and management who aren't fit to run the club or team.

John: If Fernandez is a toxic presence in the dressing room, then sanctioning him was the right move. Only the coach and players would know.

If not - if his only transgression was speculating about his future - then benching him was a sign of weakness and will backfire. All that discussion will only intensify and go underground.

Daren: Rosenior strikes me as a decent guy, who treats people with respect. Enzo has crossed a line and Rosenior must show that he's the boss or risk losing authority.

David: As vice captain he's a disgrace. What example is he setting to all his team mates and the academy?

John: No, he was right to state his views. The suspension is a sign of a weak coach trying to stay relevant.

Russ: The players will now start not bothering and then Liam will be sacked and then we start again. I love Chelsea but that's how we seem to roll.

Tim: Rosenior should drop himself! Inept and out of his league with our club! He should hand in a transfer request and go asap.

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Chelsea right-back Malo Gusto feels the international break has been "good for us to forget about past mistakes" and they are "all fighting every day" to reach their objectives.

It has been a difficult period for the Blues, having lost four successive matches and winning just once in their past six Premier League games.

However, they return to action in the quarter-final of the FA Cup this weekend at home to Port Vale and sit just one point off fifth-placed Liverpool as they chase down a Champions League spot.

"There are a few moments that will be tough for us, but the only thing that I can say and I would say is to look forward for the rest of the season," Gusto told BBC Sport.

"There is the FA Cup coming up. The Premier League that we still compete for our objective which is top four, the Champions League for the next season. Can't wait to play the rest of the games to achieve our target.

"I think the international break was good for us to forget about the past mistakes that we did in terms of results. So I think the atmosphere is how it is. We just have to change it in our advantage. To be even more together, more than ever. To show our best on the pitch and show that we we're still on the road to compete for the trophies."

After a positive start under new boss Liam Rosenior at the beginning of the year, the team and the head coach have come in for criticism over recent performances and heavy defeats.

Gusto, who has featured in all but three league games this campaign, is still positive about what Rosenior has brought to the club.

"He has a great impact. He's a really good person. We spoke a lot since he joined the club," said the France international.

"We know that it was a bit hard in terms of results, but I'm sure that we will change the balance, and we will show a different face. First of all for us, for what we want to achieve, and for the fans.

"He's really passionate. He really want to to achieve the biggest things for the club. We all want to put Chelsea where it's supposed to be, so we are all fighting every day to do that. That's that's our objective."

After Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior confirmed in his news conference on Friday that "frustrated" Enzo Fernandez will not be included in the squads to be face Port Vale in the FA Cup or Manchester City in the league, we want to know what you make of the decision.

The Blues boss insisted he has "the utmost respect" for the midfielder and what he has achieved, but a "line was crossed" in recent interviews that brought speculation over his future at the club.

So, do you think Rosenior is right to drop Fernandez? Or could this decision have wider ramifications for the rest of Chelsea's season?

Get in touch with your views here

Read more from what Rosenior said about the situation in his news conference below

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior has been speaking to the media before Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final against Port Vale at Stamford Bridge (kick-off 17:15 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Rosenior confirmed Enzo Fernandez has been dropped from the squad to face Port Vale and the following game against Manchester City as a sanction for recent comments made about his future.

• The midfielder raised questions about whether he would still be at the club beyond the summer in an interview after Chelsea's Champions League exit at the hands of Paris St-Germain. He then clarified his focus now was with the Blues, but in a more recent interview he said: "I'd like to live in Spain, I really like Madrid - it reminds me of Buenos Aires," when asked where he would love to live if he were to leave London.

• In response to those, Rosenior said: "It's disappointing for Enzo to speak that way. I have got no bad words to say about him but a line was crossed in terms of our culture and what we want to build."

• He continued: "In terms of the decision, it's not all about me, or the sporting directors, the ownership, the players. We are aligned in every decision that we make. It was a joint decision. The door is not closed on Enzo. It's a sanction. You have to protect the culture, and in terms of that, a line was crossed in the international break."

• The Blues boss also said the situation is "not ideal" and "a lot of this stems from a difficult 10 days in terms of results we have had", with a "huge emotional dump that fell through into the next three games" following the first-leg defeat by PSG.

• He added: "The players were motivated that we could do something really special in the Champions League. The comments from Enzo and Marc Cucurella's interview both stem from that. It actually stems from a good place where they want the club to succeed. But in those moments, we need more emotional stability as a group of players."

• Asked for more on Cucurella, who said during the international break it would be "hard to turn down" former club Barcelona, Rosenior responded: "I had a fantastic conversation with Marc yesterday, half an hour in my office. I've been here for less than three months and I'm enjoying it - even the difficult moments. I've told the players from day one that if they have any issues on how we do things, speak to me or sporting directors."

• He continued: "My disappointment in Marc's interview was where it went to. I think he should've spoken to us first about how he was feeling. I want players to know they can speak openly and honestly for the benefit of the football club. As a football club, we know we need to improve."

• Rosenior did confirm, however, Cucurella was a separate case and he would be available for Saturday.

• The head coach insisted he wants to be fully focussed on the FA Cup quarter-final, but this is not about him winning silverware for his own career but "about the club being successful now and in the long-term".

Listen to full commentary of Chelsea v Port Vale on Saturday at 17:15 BST on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds

You can also watch live on the BBC and found out how to follow all of the action here

Follow all of Friday's FA Cup news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Got a question about Chelsea? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts

Morgan Rogers would be open to leaving Aston Villa this summer, with Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United all in the mix to sign the 23-year-old England midfielder. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

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Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter

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"If I'd played 50 games at Chelsea, or even 20, I'm not in this position today," Charly Musonda told BBC Sport.

His lack of minutes at Chelsea left him with limited options. A move to Levante in Spain's second division was made with promotion in mind but after the club failed to go up on the final day of the season, Musonda says he was pushed out to save on wages.

"In Spain I left early, in Cyprus I wasn't paid. I had to walk away and leave money behind - still haven't been paid," he said.

Musonda smiles throughout the interview and says he is excited about VS1, a new one-versus-one, combat sport-style football league he is working on from his base in Los Angeles.

"Doing what you believe in - that's happiness. Living with purpose, adventure, things fall where they fall. That mentality comes from my dad. Even when life hit him hard, he always smiled," he said.

Read more from Musonda's BBC interview here

Matt Jones
BBC Sport journalist

Manchester City and Chelsea, even with heavy spending in recent years, are leading the way this season when it comes to the use of academy players.

City have used seven academy players in the Premier League in 2025-26 - more than any other side. Chelsea's graduates, meanwhile, have accumulated the most minutes with 5,673.

Manchester United's tradition continues - their ongoing run of naming at least one home-grown player in a matchday squad dates back to 1937. They have used six this season, although their combined minutes (1,264) are well short of Chelsea and City (5,162).

There are some nuances within the numbers.

Across the Premier League, there are players from top-flight academies now at other teams.

Some players moved clubs during the season and others moved from one academy to another before making a senior appearance, the most notable example being Rio Ngumoha from Chelsea to Liverpool.

Read the full article

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We asked for your views on Chelsea posting a pre-tax loss of more than £262m for 2024-25 - the biggest pre-tax loss in Premier League history.

Here are some of your comments:

Peter: It's out of control, a frenzy of vast sums of money on unproven young players. It might have been acceptable if they had been top of the league and still in the Champions League, but they are not and hence it's not acceptable.

Jim: I have been going to watch Chelsea since 1955 and I've seen both ups and downs at the club. Since the takeover I've seen a severe downside and it's my hope that something will be done to reverse this trend.

David: If we were battling for the Premier League and building a new stadium, I'd still be concerned about these losses. But at the moment it looks a disaster. Maybe Clearlake are as clever as they think they are and it'll all work out.

James: My concern is the club as a whole and success on the pitch plays a large part in what happens off it. At the moment, Chelsea seem to be regressing and the comments from certain players do not help. Champions League qualification is vital and although a complex case, the club is never going to increase matchday revenue playing in what is, by Premier League standards, a small stadium.

John: My concern is that we continue wasting money on substandard players that don't improve the team and the lack of desire to win trophies.

Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City are keeping tabs on 27-year-old Barcelona and France defender Jules Kounde. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish), external

Inter Milan and Netherlands right-back Denzel Dumfries has been offered to Premier League clubs including Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle United, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham. (Teamtalk), external

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Chelsea have announced a £262m pre-tax loss for 2024-25 - the biggest in Premier League history.

It eclipses the £197.5m lost by Manchester City in 2011 and means the Blues now occupy four places in the top ten list of biggest pre-tax losses in the Premier League era as seen below.

It comes despite Chelsea bringing in £490.9m in revenue, which the club says is the second highest total in their history.

The club insist they remain compliant with financial regulations such as Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) which allow losses of £105m over three years.

Blues fans, do these losses concern you? Is it symptomatic of wider problems? Or are you only concerned with what you see on the pitch?

Let us know here

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

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It is important to note that Chelsea have not yet released their full accounts, which will soon be published at Companies House and are expected to provide a more detailed picture.

The only information currently available is from the statement made by Chelsea on Wednesday., external

"People ask whether Chelsea are a football club or a hedge‑fund experiment. I don't think these accounts offer any clearer answer. We are still waiting to see the full picture on Companies House," said football finance expert Kieran Maguire.

He said the figures highlighted the importance of Champions League football to a club that is currently sixth in the Premier League.

He added: "For every one pound you receive from broadcasting [in the Champions League], you only get 11p in the Conference League, and it is much harder for the marketing department to sell a hospitality box for a match against the second‑best team in Denmark than when Barcelona come to town."

There are also concerns that Stamford Bridge is beginning to look dated, leaving Chelsea at risk of falling behind their rivals, particularly with new Premier League squad-cost ratio rules coming into force this summer.

These replace PSR and allow clubs to spend 85% of their total revenues on squad-related costs.

"Chelsea have only a 40,000‑capacity stadium and are around half of Manchester United's size, and probably £50-60m behind others," Maguire added.

"With the introduction of the new squad‑cost ratio rules, it is really important for clubs to boost revenue wherever they can.

"Chelsea are simply behind their rivals, with less to spend on players - and that will take its toll over time."

Maguire agreed it was unlikely Chelsea would breach Premier League regulations.

Chelsea made a £128.4m profit last year - almost entirely due to the sale of their women's team to themselves, a loophole that has since been closed.

It means pre-tax losses over the past three years are about £220m in total, but Maguire said that Chelsea would have needed to submit the losses accounted for under PSR by 31 December.

"The lack of any news suggests the league is satisfied with their PSR figures," Maguire said.

Will Faulks
Fan writer

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The international break means two weeks without a Chelsea game - the perfect window for a small story to get blown out of proportion as fans and journalists sit around waiting for the Premier League to return.

It was to this backdrop that Enzo Fernandez chose to launch his farewell tour.

He had already planted the seeds with his comments after the Champions League defeat by Paris St-Germain a couple of weeks ago, where he sighed that he "didn't know" where he would be playing next season.

His return to Argentina for national team duty then gave him the perfect platform to start the next stage: the open flirtation with Real Madrid. He went on a podcast over the weekend to talk about how much he would like to live in the Spanish capital. Hardly subtle, bordering on shameless.

The vice-captain is destabilising his team at a crucial moment in the season and has shown that he is putting his desires and his career ahead of the club he is supposed to be a leader and a cornerstone player for.

If Fernandez leaves, the BlueCo project stops being just stuck and starts going backwards. Players who might otherwise be happy to continue giving their best now see a senior starter agitating to move and begin wondering if they should be doing the same thing.

Chelsea are then stuck in an impossible position, even if they do get a big offer for Enzo: sell a key piece and admit your ambitions are not matching those of the world's best players, or hold on to an unhappy player who is clearly not afraid to make a fuss?

The long contracts players such as Enzo have been signed to are supposed to protect the club - but they can't force a player to be happy, or to play well. In fact, there is a sense Enzo is accelerating his campaign to leave precisely because the club has so much leverage on paper.

Find more from Will Faulks at Chelsea News, external

Alastair Telfer
BBC Sport journalist

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Marc Cucurella has played under five different permanent managers since joining Chelsea in the summer of 2022.

Enzo Maresca took over in 2024 and guided the Blues to a top-four finish, the Club World Cup title and also success in the Conference League in 2025.

Liam Rosenior, who was managing Strasbourg, took over following the departure of Maresca at the start of the year.

"We knew what Maresca wanted from us," Cucurella told The Athletic., external

"Winning a title like the Club World Cup also helps, strengthens the bond, and you create great relationships during the celebrations.

"When a manager gives you that confidence and offers you a platform to fight for titles, you'd die for him.

"The moment Maresca left, it had a big impact on us. These are decisions taken by the club. If you asked me, I would not have made this decision. To make a change like that, the best thing is to wait until the end of the season.

"You would give everyone, the players and the new manager, time to get ready, have a full pre-season.

"The instability around the club comes from this, in a nutshell. We had a caretaker [former under-21s coach Calum McFarlane] first, then a new manager, with new ideas and no time to work on them. It is what it is."

Chelsea are six points outside the top four - although just one behind Liverpool in fifth - and suffered their joint-heaviest defeat in a two‑legged European tie this month when they lost 8-2 on aggregate in the Champions League to Paris St‑Germain.

"Results like that are always hard to take," Cucurella added. "You are fighting and training every day only to realise, at the very end, that when games matter, we are still a bit away from the top level.

"I understand this is part of the club's policy, and that they want to take this direction - signing young players and looking to the future. But, for all of us who want to win big things, moments like this make you feel discouraged.

"To fight for major trophies such as the Premier League or the Champions League, you need more.

"Signing young players only might complicate achieving those goals. Against PSG, we lacked players that had gone through situations like that."

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter

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"I won't lie. Mentally, yes, it's been very difficult," the former Chelsea winger Charly Musonda told BBC Sport.

Musonda, who retired aged 28 last summer, decided to quit football after a spell in Cyprus marred by unpaid wages - but despite this being a far cry from the start of his career, there is renewed excitement on the horizon.

"One studs‑up tackle cost me four years of my career. Doctors told me I had a 20% chance of ever playing again," he said of the posterior cruciate ligament injury that changed everything in 2018.

After nearly four years out, Musonda was fit enough to return for Chelsea but found the club lost faith in him. Subsequent moves to Levante in Spain and Anorthosis in Cyprus could not revive his ambitions.

After his career instability, Musonda, based in Los Angeles, is now working on developing a one‑versus‑one, combat sport‑style football league game.

Musonda injured the PCL in his knee, an almost unheard‑of issue in football, when surgery is usually avoided to prevent altering a player's explosiveness or running style. Two months out became a full season and when he tested the knee again during his loan back at Vitesse, he broke down once more.

Seeking answers, Musonda consulted his private doctorand was advised to have surgery. Chelsea initially refused, delaying him another month, but Musonda eventually won the argument.

During his eight‑to‑10‑month recovery, the global coronavirus pandemic struck, slowing his progress further by restricting access to club facilities and staff.

At that stage, Musonda paid for parts of his own rehabilitation, hiring a private physiotherapist in Dubai at his own expense – a move he says led to him being fined but that he ultimately credits with helping him return to training three and a half years after the initial injury.

Managers Maurizio Sarri and Lampard had come and gone, and Thomas Tuchel was now in charge at Chelsea.

"I met Tuchel in the car park and he told me he knew who I was from Dortmund and to be ready for the following pre-season," Musonda said. "I came back and was told to sign a contract at half my salary and to go out on loan by Petr Cech and Carlo Cudicini, the loan coach.

"I was also told I would be training with the under-23s but I pulled one of Tuchel's coaches aside and he said it was a mistake – that I was travelling with them to Ireland the next day for the tour. I trained there and I got Covid. A nightmare.

"When I returned, Tuchel told me there was some animosity in the front office. I said I would have played for free that season to prove myself at Chelsea and that if I wasn't good enough, I would walk away when my contract expired.

"I knew from September that I wouldn't play and it was tough, especially after being told I had only a 20% chance of playing football again when I had the surgery to then feeling fully fit.

"I just needed an opportunity at Chelsea, but it was a tough sell after so long out. Mentally, that was one of the toughest moments. It killed me. Chelsea was where I wanted to make it."

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We asked for your views on whether Chelsea will win enough points in their remaining seven matches to qualify for next season's Champions League.

Here are some of your comments:

Robert: Not a hope...Chelsea are on a downward path and may not even get past Port Vale in the FA Cup. Give it up Blues fans..!

Nick: We'll be lucky to secure a Conference League spot, given current form. With three fixtures against teams in the top five, and two against teams fighting to avoid the drop, Chelsea have the toughest run-in, by some distance. The perfect end to the season, however, would be for us to secure a CL place by winning the penultimate match - relegating Spurs at the same time.

Paul: No chance making the Champions League this season.

Christopher: Chelsea, based on the fixtures and recent form, do not in all honesty belong among Europe's finest teams. Failure to beat teams below them in the standings says it all! From a Chelsea fan since the sixties!

David: Chelsea will be lucky to get 6 or 7 points from the games we have left this season. No Champions League football next season, manager sacked if we don't win the FA cup.

Mark: The way we're playing at the moment is with no passion, no belief and basically no goalkeeper. No idea if we're gonna drop out of the top 8. Worst of all instead of putting Spurs down we'll make sure they stay up.

William: Basically, not a chance.

James: I can't see Chelsea getting the required points to qualify for the Champions League and if they do somehow squeeze in it will largely be down to teams around them dropping points, which based on current form appears unlikely.

Real Madrid will look to sign Chelsea's 25-year-old Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez if they fail to acquire Spain midfielder Rodri, 29, from Manchester City this summer. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish), external

Chelsea and Liverpool are leading the race to sign 22-year-old Senegal midfielder Lamine Camara from Monaco. (Caught Offside), external

Manchester City's 31-year-old Netherlands defender Nathan Ake might be eyeing a move back to former club Chelsea. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

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Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

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It feels inevitable that Ryan Kavuma-McQueen will soon debut for Chelsea.

Having turned 17 in January, the winger has already been namechecked by both Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior this season, and was an unused substitute against Ajax in October.

He also travelled with Chelsea's squad to face Wrexham and has trained with the first team under Rosenior, whose staff includes promoted youth coach Calum McFarlane.

His 19 goals and five assists in 29 games across various age groups for club and country have already attracted attention, especially after his four goals against Germany's under-17 side in September.

Those close to him say he found facing players his own age easier than taking on opponents several years older at Chelsea that day.

Kavuma-McQueen, who was born at Hammersmith Hospital and grew up in Shepherd's Bush, a stone's throw from Queens Park Rangers' Loftus Road, has been competing against older boys for most of his life.

He began playing at the age of five, showing the same natural shooting and dribbling ability, and started with the Little Foxes Club before being spotted by Chelsea scout Brian Mustill while with grassroots side Shooting Stars at seven.

Raised by his mother and father in a family with two older sisters and one younger, Kavuma-McQueen progressed through Chelsea's age groups, almost exclusively playing in attacking roles despite coaches often rotating players into different positions.

As a child, he grew up watching Cristiano Ronaldo and the Brazilian Ronaldo - both of whom shared his strengths in one‑versus‑one dribbling and goalscoring - while coaches are now working on his off‑the‑ball movement.

It is his mentality that sets him apart. When watched live, Kavuma-McQueen is vocal and determined, despite being known as a joker away from football. He has sought out conversations with former captain John Terry and current skipper Reece James.

Multiple sources have suggested Chelsea worked hard to keep him, effectively preventing another major academy loss like Rio Ngumoha's move to Liverpool in 2024, and secured his first professional deal in January.

Even with competition from Estevao Willian, Kavuma-McQueen is continuing to grow at Chelsea - and his debut may not be far away.

Image source, handout

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

It seems to be the race that nobody wants to win.

Even with an additional Champions League spot all but secured for the Premier League for a second consecutive season, two of those teams hoping to benefit from that fifth place are struggling to string the results together to take control of it.

Defeats for Liverpool and Chelsea before the international break mean the Reds currently occupy the position, but the Blues are just one point adrift.

Both clubs would have hoped to be in a more comfortable position in the top four by now, but poor form is slowly reducing their chances - now five and six points off fourth respectively - and leaving them in a battle for the extra Champions League spot.

Who is mostly like to win that race is hard to predict - and it is no longer between just those two sides either, with Brentford, Everton and others getting themselves into the mix.

With just seven games left, who has the tougher run-in is always up for debate as so many factors come into play - relegation and European battles of opposition, plus distractions of possible chances of silverware elsewhere.

One way to get a feel of how things could possibly play out is by looking at what happened in the reverse fixtures of the remaining games earlier in the campaign.

When looking at how these games played out, and if the result was to be matched again - though, of course, home advantage can make a difference - Liam Rosenior's side would pick up three wins and a draw.

They picked up 10 points from those seven matches and adding that to their current Premier League total of 48 would take them to 58 points.

If that was to be compared to the same formula for Liverpool, who would pick up seven points from their seven fixtures based on the reverse results, it would mean Chelsea sneak in ahead of the Reds by two points.

Lessons can always be learned, though, and the question will be whether the Blues can do just that for these crucial final seven games and turn their recent poor form around.

With the fixtures left, how many points do you think Chelsea will get? Do you think Rosenior's side have enough to get a Champions League spot?

Get in touch with your views here