Watch: Do Chelsea really need this many players?

Chelsea’s transfer spending has soared past £1 billion between the summer of 2022 and 2024, and the result is a bloated first-team squad now numbering 43 players.

The arrivals of Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Joao Pedro have only added to new head coach Enzo Maresca’s selection headache, with the Italian facing the unenviable task of trimming the squad and maintaining harmony within a highly competitive dressing room.

Squad management, rather than further recruitment, appears the immediate challenge at Stamford Bridge as pre-season begins.