With a bloated squad ahead of a campaign without European football, Chelsea have a big summer to trim the group down, as there'll be fewer fixtures - and therefore fewer chances to go around.
Not for the first time, Chelsea are dealing with the problem of managing their squad size in the summer transfer window.
So far in the summer, Chelsea have four confirmed departures from the senior squad: Andrey Santos to Manchester United, Tyrique George to Everton, Marc Cucurella to Real Madrid and Alejandro Garnacho to Aston Villa, following an agreement between the clubs for a loan deal with a conditional obligation to buy at the end of the new season.
While it is clear that Chelsea are actively trying to sell more players, their departure list pales in comparison to the arrivals.
Marco Palestra and Morgan Rogers, from Atalanta and Aston Villa, respectively, are the club’s two latest signings.
The likes of Geovany Quenda and Emmanuel Emegha have also arrived from Sporting and Strasbourg, respectively, from prior arrangements, as well as teenage talents such as Denner and Dastan Satpaev.
In addition to these, Chelsea have also welcomed several returning loanees, such as Nicolas Jackson, Mike Penders, Axel Disasi, David Datro Fofana, and Aaron Anselmino.
This obviously presents a problem for Chelsea, who are not competing in any European competitions this season and will desperately need to reduce the size of their squad.
Following the closure of the transfer window in September, clubs will have to submit a maximum 25-man squad to the Premier League, and, as it stands, Xabi Alonso has 38 senior players in his Chelsea squad.
Even more sales needed to make space for more potential signings
There have been reports of talks between Chelsea and other clubs for potential sales.
Trevoh Chalobah has been linked with Italian clubs Inter Milan and Como. Similarly, Disasi has generated interest from Italy and West Ham, while Crystal Palace have reportedly held talks over a potential loan move.
The BBC have recently suggested that Chelsea have made these two available for transfer, as well as the likes of Benoit Badiashile, Marc Guiu, and Mamadou Sarr, who has been earmarked for a loan move.
Potential exits of these five may not prove sufficient, either, especially if Chelsea plan to continue to bring in more players to bolster Alonso’s squad this season.
Valentin Barco, for example, is expected to become Chelsea’s newest signing, joining from Strasbourg.
Obviously, Chelsea would rather avoid similar situations to the ones they had with Disasi and Raheem Sterling, in which both had to train separately from the first team while trying to secure moves away from Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea could also continue taking advantage of their relationship with Strasbourg.
That said, the FIFA rule regarding loans means clubs, including Chelsea, are limited to just six international loans for players aged 21 and above.
Young talents such as Satpaev and Denner should be the top candidates for potential loan exits.
