In March, a UEFA report found that Chelsea‘s squad at the end of the 2024 financial year was the most expensive ever in terms of transfer fees. Not the biggest surprise, right? Especially when you consider that, since being taken over by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in the summer of 2022, the Blues have signed 41 players across six transfer windows at a combined transfer cost of €1.6 billion.
Most of this money has been spent to bring in some of the world’s top young players on long contracts — such as Moisés Caicedo (€116m, Brighton), Romeo Lavia (€62.1m, Southampton) and Cole Palmer (€47m, Manchester City) — but there are also a host of players who have only made a handful of first-team appearances, including Lesley Ugochukwu (€27m, Rennes), Mathis Amougou (€15m, Saint-Étienne), Deivid Washington (€16m, Santos) and Renato Veiga (€14m, FC Basel).
So with that amount of players on the books, you might think Chelsea’s spending would slow down. But you would be wrong.
At least SEVEN youngsters will land at Stamford Bridge in the summers of 2025 and 2026, after they agreed transfers, and yet more could follow. Here’s a look at some players Chelsea might want to target, plus some vital information about those who have committed their futures to the club already.
Transfer data taken from Transfermarkt.
Who should they sign next?
Franco Mastantuono, 17, AM, River Plate
The River Plate prodigy went viral last week as his opened the scoring in the Superclásico vs. Boca Juniors with a stunning direct “Banana” free kick. Though the left-footed Mastantuono shares some similarities with incoming Chelsea players Estêvão and Páez — an obsessive dribbler with obscene natural ability — the Argentina U20 international tends to come deeper and more centrally, appearing more in the mold of a classic No. 10.
As recent history has taught us, similar technical profiles to those already in the squad doesn’t necessarily put off Chelsea. So, with Mastantuono turning 18 in the middle of August, expect a transfer battle to sign him for his reported €45m release clause in the next window as Real Madrid, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan and Inter Milan are all keeping tabs on him.
For example, Brazilian midfielder Andrey Santos signed from Vasco da Gama for €21m in 2023 but has been on loan back at Vasco, Nottingham Forest (where he made only one appearance) and was then at Chelsea’s feeder club Strasbourg last season. He could well contend for a first-team place but meanwhile, Aaron Anselmino (€16.5m, Boca Juniors), Omari Kellyman (€22.5m, Aston Villa) and Caleb Wiley (€10.5m, Atlanta United) have yet to make a first-team appearance.
The club have spent some significant cash ahead of the next two seasons already and while some of the below may never wear a Chelsea shirt, spending their entire time on loan before moving elsewhere, here’s what you need to know about them anyway.
Arriving in 2025
Estêvão, 18, FW, Palmeiras – €34m
Having featured in more than 70 first-team games for Palmeiras — with four senior caps for Brazil — Estêvão is already beyond a player of potential and grabbed 19th spot in this year’s 39 U21 ranking despite his age. Indeed, he is considered by many professional scouts as a future world-class superstar.
A right winger, he has outstanding one-vs.-one abilities — with intuitive turns and high-velocity take-ons — as well as brilliant ball-striking with his left foot and a natural understanding of where to find space. While there are issues to work on, namely his pressing and ability to make an impact throughout the game, but his natural mobility and flair should make him an exciting watch.
Prospects of first-team football next season? High. He is too exciting a player to loan out and his first-team experience in Brazil should see him ready to make starts in the Premier League.
Dário Essugo, 20, CM, Sporting CP – €22.2m
The arrival of Essugo went under the radar as it was attached to the signing of wing-back Geovany Quenda in a €74m double deal. Essugo has struggled for minutes at Sporting, so has been on loan at Las Palmas this season, but some will recall him becoming the youngest Portuguese player to feature in the Champions League when he made a late cameo against Ajax in December 2021 (at 16 years and 268 days.)
Predominantly a defensive midfielder, the Portugal U21 international excels at recovering the ball, plugging gaps in midfield, tracking attacking runs and pressing duties. He also loves to tackle — perhaps excessively so as he’s picked up two red cards for Las Palmas since the turn of the year.
Prospects of first-team football next season? Slim. A loan move appears likely given how many midfielders the club have.
Kendry Páez, 18, AM, Independiente del Valle – €10m
Páez has been on the radar of the top European clubs since the age of 12. He scored on his professional debut for Independiente del Valle at the age of 15 and amassed 17 international senior caps for Ecuador before turning 18 – a record that has surpassed Diego Maradona’s for Argentina and is only behind Spain‘s Lamine Yamal worldwide.
Chelsea formally agreed a deal to sign him two years ago, when he was 16, and since then Páez has continued to impress. Considered by many scouts as a generational talent, his reputation is not far off that of Estêvão and the two are similar in style as well. Páez is a left-footed attacking midfielder with outstanding dribbling skills who enjoys showcasing his rapid changes of direction, bold, playful feints and tricks aplenty. He prefers to receive the ball in the space between the defence and midfield, either centrally or slightly to the right, and loves to test the goalkeeper with shots from distance.
Prospects of first-team football next season? Slim. Given that his profile is relatively similar to Estêvão, a loan move is most likely.
Mike Penders, 19, GK, Genk – €20m
Signed at the tail end of last summer’s transfer window, Penders joins Chelsea’s abundant roster of eight first-team goalkeepers (Robert Sánchez, Filip Jörgensen, Marcus Bettinelli, Djordje Petrovic, Lucas Bergstrom, Eddie Beach, Kepa Arrizabalaga, and Gaga Slonina) in July. The Belgium U19 international will have plenty of competition but is rated highly on the scouting scene and his 6-foot-7 size and international allegiance has drawn inevitable comparisons to Real Madrid No. 1 Thibaut Courtois.
Penders has made a fine impression in his debut season as a semi-regular for Genk, displaying reliable distribution, good reflexes and being quick off his line to snuff out danger. Given his size, his lack of mobility in certain areas needs to be compensated with expert positioning and game-reading appreciation, though his short passing is a work in progress.
Prospects of first-team football next season? Possible. Sanchez and Jörgensen haven’t covered themselves in glory this season, so coach Enzo Maresca might be tempted to give Penders early opportunities if he can prove his passing is up to scratch.
Arriving in 2026
Geovany Quenda, 17, RB/RW, Sporting CP – €52.1m
While he’s still awaiting his senior cap for Portugal, Quenda is considered as one of the top U18 talents in the world and the Blues did well to sign him from under the noses of Manchester United. A pure winger, with his main strengths coming in the attacking phase, the Portugal U21 international has shone in an unfamiliar wing-back role on the right for Sporting. But regardless of where he plays, his trademark abilities don’t change much: relentless dribbling in wide areas, the willingness to take on opponents, and eagerness to set up combination passes with his teammates as he progresses into the box.
Denner, 17, LB, Corinthians – €10m
Denner was picked up by Chelsea following promising displays at youth level for club and country and will join from Corinthians when he turns 18 in 2026. Arguably one of the least-known prospects signed by the West London side since their quest to secure the next crop of world talent took hold, Denner has a reputation as a strong-running, tenacious left-back with an unrelenting attacking instinct.
Destan Satpaev, 16, ST, Kairat Almaty – €2.4m
An aggressive, explosive, robust and all-action centre-forward, Satpaev first stirred excitement among scouts following some promising displays in the UEFA Youth League. He shoots exceptionally well with either foot and seems to thrive on goals, as all good strikers should. This season he’s found the net six times from five starts for Kairat in the Kazakh league and became the youngest-ever debutant for Kazakhstan (at 16 years, 7 months, 10 days) in the World Cup qualifiers in March. Though he plays in a comparatively weak league, his early impact has been nothing short of jaw-dropping.
