Can £117m buy Morgan Rogers put Chelsea back in the title mix?

Here, the Press Association analyses how they look following the closure of the transfer window.

Significant signings

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Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa) – £117m
Maxence Lacroix (Crystal Palace) – £52m
Marco Palestra (Atalanta) – £43m
Geovany Quenda (Sporting Lisbon) – £40m
Valentin Barco (Strasbourg) – £34m
Emmanuel Emegha (Strasbourg) – £22m
Pep Chavarria (Rayo Vallecano) – £16.3m
Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa) – £7.5m
Danny Welbeck (Brighton) – £5m
Dastan Satpayev (Kairat) – £3.4m
Jordan Henderson (Brentford) – free

It has been a summer of extraordinary player turnover at Stamford Bridge with around £328million spent on strengthening the squad, the most eye-catching buy being that of Morgan Rogers who arrived for a club-record £117m. Maxence Lacroix from Crystal Palace for £52m also represents a significant sign of intent as the club have moved on from talented novices to prioritising experienced Premier League players. No two recruits better capture that new direction than veterans Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson, brought in with a mind to helping foster a more mature atmosphere in the dressing room. The signing of Emiliano Martinez has been heralded as the final piece of the puzzle after years of uncertainty in the goalkeeper position. Marco Palestra, Geovany Quenda and Valentin Barco are highly-rated youngsters while Pep Chavarria brings experience.

Summer departures

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Enzo Fernandez (Manchester City) – £125m
Andrey Santos (Manchester United) – £48m
Marc Cucurella (Real Madrid) – £47.5m
Nicolas Jackson (Aston Villa) – £65m
Liam Delap (Nottingham Forest) – £45m
Trevoh Chalobah (Como) – £25.7m
Tyrique George (Everton) – £18m
Marc Guiu (RB Leipzig) – £14.6m
Tosin Adarabioyo (Tottenham) – £7m
David Datro Fofana (Servette) – £2.1m
Alejandro Garnacho (Aston Villa) – loan
Filip Jorgensen (Strasbourg) – loan
Dastan Satpayev (Burnley) – loan
Benoit Badiashile (Napoli) – loan
Axel Disasi (Crystal Palace) – loan
Mamadou Sarr (Real Sociedad) – loan
Dario Essugo (Strasbourg) – loan
Mykhailo Mudryk (Tottenham) – loan
Robert Sanchez (Como) – loan

Despite their high spend, Chelsea have recorded a remarkable £120m profit with 19 players having been moved out either permanently or on loan, netting them a figure of around £519m, a global record for a single window. Enzo Fernandez, who moved to Manchester City on deadline day for a joint-British record £125m, leaves behind the most significant hole, although Xabi Alonso’s midfield looks equipped to cope. Marc Cucurella’s £47m move to Real Madrid was one of the only sales that left the team weaker in his position, while the club will have been thrilled to have negotiated such sizeable fees for cast-off strikers Nicolas Jackson (£65m to Aston Villa) and Liam Delap (£45m to Nottingham Forest). Robert Sanchez’s late loan move to Como brought an end to his tumultuous tenure as the Blues’ number one, while Mykhailo Mudryk’s loan to Spurs offers the chance of a reset following his doping ban.

One to watch

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The big money may have been splashed on Rogers but the versatile wing-back Marco Palestra brings something fresh to the Premier League, having been named Serie A defender of the year last season while on loan at Cagliari. Able to operate on either flank, the 21-year-old was deployed on the left by Alonso in pre-season, though injury has so far prevented him from making his competitive debut. A two-cap Italy international, his signing shows that, despite prioritising seniority in this window, Chelsea still have an eye for young talent.

Squad strength

Alonso still has extraordinary squad depth available to him despite the transfer exodus. The front three of Rogers, Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro arguably rivals anything in the league, while Reece James is set to make a more permanent transition to central midfield where he will play alongside Moises Caicedo, with Romeo Lavia as a more than useful third option. Maxence Lacroix is an assured top-flight operator alongside Levi Colwill and Wesley Fofana in defence, and new signings Pep Chavarria and Marco Palestra provide options at wing-back, with Pedro Neto also looking likely to spend much of the season in that position.