Chelsea did not make any signings in the January transfer window but there is one player who signed in the summer who is missing from the 25-man squad list.
Chelsea will be hoping to kickstart their season after their fine 3-1 win over Aston Villa to progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday. The Blues have struggled to get any momentum this season under new head coach Mauricio Pochettino and sit 11th in the Premier League table.
But a place in the fifth round of the FA Cup and a final appearance in the Carabao Cup and they could add some gloss to an otherwise disappointing campaign. Pochettino will be hoping his charges improve in the league as well though, with an outside chance of European football if they can get their act together.
After making no signings in the January transfer window, Pochettino is going with the same squad that he started the season with for the rest of the campaign.
Premier League clubs have had to name updated 25-man squads for the second half of the season, with Chelsea 's looking no different to how it was at the start of the 2023/24 season. When looking through the names, there are some omissions, however, but there are good reasons for that.
Premier League rules state: "Each squad contains no more than 17 players who do not fulfil the 'Home Grown Player' criteria. The rest of the squad, up to a total of 25 players, must be 'Home Grown'.
"A 'Home Grown Player' means a player who, irrespective of nationality or age, has been registered with any club affiliated to The Football Association or the Football Association of Wales for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons, or 36 months, before his 21st birthday (or the end of the season during which he turns 21).
"Under-21 players are eligible over and above the limit of 25 players per squad. For the 2023/24 campaign, Under-21 players will have been born on or after January 1, 2002."
It is that U21 rule that is pertinent here, with summer signing Romeo Lavia, who has managed just 32 minutes of football since joining from Southampton in a £58million deal the summer, missing from the 25-man squad - 19 in Chelsea's case - named this week.
Lavia, who is just 20 years old, is on that U21 list, alongside the likes of Cole Palmer, Malo Gusto and Noni Madueke.
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