Which players should Chelsea sign? Plus: All you need to know about Estêvão, Essugo, other arrivals

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.

What players 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 Kendry 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.

Ayyoub Bouaddi, 17, CM, Lille

Bouaddi is not yet an undisputed regular for Lille, but he has made a name for himself this season and stood out in the club’s impressive UEFA Champions League campaign. The France U21 international is arguably best as a box-to-box No. 8 midfielder but can perform in a deeper role or even tucked in behind the centre-forward.

A brilliant passer and dribbler, Bouaddi is always looking to get on the ball and is not afraid of taking responsibility for creative moves despite his young age. He is also strong on the defensive side of the game, winning back possession by way of tackles (4.15 per 90 minutes) or duels (5.5 successful per 90 minutes). Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig have been linked with a €30m move for him, but he can’t depart until January 2026 at the earliest.

Konstantinos Karetsas, 17, AM, Racing Genk

Karetsas was fast-tracked into the first team at Genk following the departure of Bilal El Khannouss to Leicester City and the two are fairly similar in style, though Karetas perhaps has an even higher ceiling. Indeed, he immediately found himself at home in the Belgian Pro League, competing for a starting spot before he turned 17 in November, and recently changed international allegiance to Greece just a few months after making his U21 debut for Belgium, the country of his birth.

Karetsas is a creative playmaker and proficient dribbler who thrives in the central space between the defensive lines and has registered 2.5 key passes per 90 minutes this season. Though he’s only scored three times, that return is likely to grow has he shoots well with his left foot. His skills have already drawn attention from some of the elite European clubs (including Liverpool, Nottingham Forest, Man United and Newcastle) and his transfer might fetch a fee north of the €25m that Leicester spent to sign El Khannouss.

Chris Rigg, 17, CM, Sunderland

A year ago, Rigg was the subject of great interest as his contract was about to expire. In the end, he decided to sign a three-year deal, but if fourth-placed Sunderland fail to gain promotion to the Premier League via the playoffs at the end of the season the race for the England U19 midfielder will be back on.

Rigg, who usually features as a box-to-box No. 8 or a No. 10 behind striker, has a unique set of abilities: on one hand he’s a creative midfielder, excellent at finding space between the lines and delivering a killer pass, while on the other he possesses the tenacity, dynamism and work-rate of a classic defensive midfielder. And that has not gone unnoticed from the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool, Crystal Palace, West Ham and Everton.

Saba Kharebashvili, 16, LB/LWB, Dinamo Tbilisi

Targeting youngsters from Georgia might sound exotic, but Chelsea have already proven their willingness to cast their eyes far afield as you’ll see below. Dinamo Tbilisi have a long-standing track record of nurturing elite talent — PSG winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Liverpool goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili are two recent examples, plus Newcastle-bound 17-year-old striker Vakhtang Salia — makes it a potentially rewarding place to look for the next generation.

Kharebashvili has been a part of the first team set-up at Dinamo for over a year and has been a starter since the age of 15. Though able to fill roles in central midfield, the Georgia U19 international has settled into the left-back role and has excelled with his excellent attitude, steady defensive displays, progressive passing and an attacking mindset that sees him produce well-executed crosses and cut-backs. Originating from outside the EU, Kharebashvili won’t qualify for an international move before January 2027, but he will not be short of suitors.

Who have they signed already?

Chelsea already have a crop of young players arriving from around the world, but you may not know very much about them.

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 center 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.