Chelsea

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella has confirmed that his contract extension is "done".

The 27-year-old started Chelsea's 5-1 win away at West Ham amid pre-match rumours that he signed on improved terms at Stamford Bridge.

There has yet to be any official announcement about Cucurella's new contract, whith his previous deal set to expire in 2028.

However, when asked by Spanish media at London Stadium, Cucurella said: "Yes, it's done. We already did it.

"I'm very happy, the club gave me the confidence and I'm very happy to be here. Hopefully I will have a great year."

Cucurella delivered seven goals and four assists in all competitions last season as the Blues won the Club World Cup and Conference League while qualifying for the Champions League through a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, after victory in the London derby on Friday, fellow defender Trevoh Chalobah says Chelsea have the squad to challenge for big titles.

He added: "I think definitely. By having a strong squad like that, with Champions League and Premier League, in different positions then everyone is going to be important to achieve something big."

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter at London Stadium

Image source, Getty Images

Given his contribution of goals and assists, and starring roles in the Conference League and Club World Cup triumphs, Chelsea had previously been labelled "Cole Palmer FC" by pundits - and even former manager Mauricio Pochettino.

Even though there was concern when the forward was forced out of this match as a precuation because of a groin injury, a dominant display and contributions from five different scorers showed his team-mates are capable of stepping up in his absence.

"I'm very happy, very impressed, especially because we didn't start in the right way. Cole injury and conceding after five minutes, but the reaction was very good," said boss Enzo Maresca, whose side shared a goalless draw with Crystal Palace in their opening league match.

"Cole, in the last four or five days, was not 100%. Today, he tried the warm-up, but he felt something and we prefer not to take any risk for it to get worse. We'll see in the next hours if it's something important or not."

Making his first start for the club since joining from Palmeiras, Palmer's replacement Estevao again looked exciting on the right wing despite an early mistake.

Joao Pedro has four goals and two assists in his first five competitive matches since joining Chelsea from Brighton for £55m, while Pedro Neto also scored. Midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo added goals to continue their excellent form in 2025, with both Liam Delap and substitute Jamie Gittens given opportunities in attack.

There is substantial quality in the Chelsea squad already, and it could get stronger before the transfer deadline on 1 September.

Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho and RB Leipzig playmaker Xavi Simons are targets, but it would require forwards Nicolas Jackson, Christopher Nkunku and Tyrique George - all of whom were not involved at West Ham - to leave in the coming days.

Regardless of who comes in, Palmer will remain Chelsea's "best player" - as Maresca admitted after the match.

And the Italian will be hoping the 23-year-old's injury does not sideline him for long, with another London derby against Fulham to follow at Stamford Bridge next Saturday.

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca, speaking to BBC Sport: "Very happy for today, also very happy last week. I thought the performance was good. We didn't score then but tonight we scored five."

On Cole Palmer: "In the last four or five days he was not 100%. In the warm-up he felt something and we didn't want to take any risk."

On Estevao: "He needs to adapt. He needs to make many mistakes to understand how the Premier League is different to Brazil. We conceded after he did the flick and he needs to understand, but he is a fantastic player."

Thoughts on recent successes: "It has been fantastic. I think probably no-one expected the last results - Conference League, Club World Cup, top four in the Premier League - but we achieved it."

On Reece James not starting: "Reece is one of our best players. I would like to start every game with him but we have more players. We have two good full-backs and will use both."

Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella, speaking on Sky Sports: "We started a little bit sloppy but the reaction from the team was very good. We showed a lot of energy. We want to play good football and we have a good result tonight."

On losing Palmer in the warm-up: "It's difficult. We practise one thing, then we need to change very fast but I think Estevao, in this case, played an amazing game. I think it's very important because we have a good squad. All of us are ready at any time and we are very happy because we showed we have a good team. We have an amazing squad, so I hope we can do good things this season."

Did you know?

• Under Enzo Maresca, Chelsea have picked up more points in Premier League London derbies since the start of last season than any other side (26 - P14 W7 D5 L2).

• Estevao is the youngest player in Premier League history to assist a goal for the Blues at 18 years and 120 days.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on West Ham's performance

What did you make of Chelsea's display?

Come back to this page on Saturday to find a selection of your replies

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter at London Stadium

West Ham have made just one change to the team that lost 3-0 at Sunderland, with Tomas Soucek coming in for Guido Rodriguez.

Meanwhile, Chelsea make three changes to the team that drew 0-0 at home to Crystal Palace last week and start Liam Delap alongside Joao Pedro up front, with Jamie Gittens dropping to the bench.

Tosin Adarabioyo returns from injury in place of Josh Acheampong and Malo Gusto comes in for Reece James.

West Ham XI: Hermansen, Todibo, Kilman, Aguerd, Wan-Bissaka, Ward-Prowse, Soucek, Diouf, Paqueta, Bowen, Fullkrug

Subs: Areola, Walker-Peters, Mavropanos, Scarles, Rodriguez, Irving, Potts, Wilson, Marshall

Chelsea XI: Sanchez, Gusto, Tosin, Chalobah, Cucurella, Caicedo, Fernandez, Neto, Palmer, Joao Pedro, Delap

Subs: Jorgensen, James, Fofana, Acheampong, Hato, Essugo, Andrey Santos, Estevao Willian, Gittens

Image source, Getty Images

Defender Renato Veiga has completed a permanent move from Chelsea to Villarreal for a fee rising to £26m.

The 22-year-old joined the Blues from Basel for £12m in July 2024 and made 18 appearances for the club during the first half of last season.

Struggling for regular game time, Veiga then went on loan to Serie A side Juventus in January, where he featured 15 times in the league.

The Portugal international was deemed surplus to requirements by manager Enzo Maresca and was training in the so-called 'bomb squad' - a group of senior players away from the first team - having asked to play at centre-back instead of left-back midway through last season.

His move will see Chelsea raise an estimated £251.7m from selling 11 players, to balance £277m of spending on nine new recruits in a busy summer of transfers.

Sophie Brown
BBC Sport journalist

West Ham host Chelsea, with both sides looking to kick-start their campaigns after disappointing opening games.

The Hammers ended last season with two wins in their last three matches but offered few encouraging signs in their opening match of this campaign, looking lacklustre as they lost 3-0 at newly promoted Sunderland.

And it may not be a case of returning to home comforts for the Hammers, whose last win at London Stadium came back in February.

Another defeat will pile the pressure on head coach Graham Potter, whose predecessor Julen Lopetegui was sacked after 20 league matches, which is the landmark Potter will reach on Friday evening.

Anything short of a victory will mean Potter's record compares unfavourably with Lopetegui's, and the former Chelsea and Brighton boss has already had the dreaded 'vote of confidence' this week.

After winning five of their final six Premier League games last season and picking up the Club World Cup title over the summer, the 0-0 home draw with Crystal Palace on the opening weekend of this campaign was something of a comedown for Chelsea and Enzo Maresca.

The Blues have refurbished their forward line, with four new attackers – signed for a combined total of over £160m – making their debut last weekend. But neither they nor their new team-mates found the net, amassing only three shots on target.

It was the fifth time Chelsea had begun a Premier League campaign against a London rival, and the first time they had failed to win it.

They will need to get better at dealing with local rivals as they are starting the season with four consecutive derbies, with games against Fulham and Brentford following the trip to West Ham.

Image source, Getty Images

Former Chelsea defender Mario Melchiot believes the club should not be considered as title contenders this season when there has been such a high player turnover this summer.

"I don't think it should be the main focus at the moment," said Melchiot on BBC Radio 5 Live. "With so many new players, this season should be about getting in the top three and see what happens then.

"Going after the league straight away is a big shout and I don't want to make that."

Melchiot also previewed this evening's trip to West Ham, who will be looking to bounce-back after suffering a miserable 3-0 opening day defeat to newly-promoted Sunderland.

"It is never an easy ground to go to," he added. "Chelsea have to be smart and up the tempo and put them under pressure.

"West Ham's confidence is not that high and they have to start quickly so they cannot compete with them."

West Ham were as flat as anything at Sunderland, my colleague Ian Dennis on BBC Radio 5 Live called them anaemic. I'm a little bit worried for them this season.

I was at Chelsea's last game against Crystal Palace and I thought they also lacked that spark.

A lot has been made about Chelsea's new attack. Joao Pedro was quiet, Cole Palmer was quiet. There's also a stat going around that Palmer hasn't scored a league goal from open play since January.

West Ham might prove me wrong, it is a London derby after all, but I still think Chelsea will find a way to edge it.

Sutton's prediction: 0-2

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca says midfielder Andrey Santos is set to stay at Stamford Bridge despite widespread reports of interest in the midfielder.

The Blues reportedly turned down an offer from West Ham, who they face on Friday evening, for the one-time Brazil international earlier this summer.

When asked about the future of the 22-year-old, who spent the past 18 months on loan at partner club Strasbourg, Maresca said: "First of all, I am very happy with Andrey and the idea that Andrey stays here with us.

"He can play in Enzo Fernandez or Moises Caicedo's positions for sure. He played one game in the Club World Cup against Palmeiras where he was very good as a number six. So he can play in both positions very well."

Maresca also said that forwards Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku are training with the main squad but being allowed to explore moves away, adding: "I think it is better if they find a solution as they will be more happy, the club the same."

Tottenham are exploring the possibility of signing 27-year-old Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku. (Teamtalk), external

Manchester United are hoping Tottenham will enter the race to sign 21-year-old Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho and provide competition to Chelsea. (Givemesport), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League game against West Ham at London Stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Maresca confirmed Romeo Lavia and Benoit Badiashile both remain out through injury, but Wesley Fofana is available again and "can get some minutes", as well as Tosin Adarabioyo.

• On the latest situation with defender Fofana after he removed mentions of Chelsea from his Instagram: "I speak with Wes every day, he is very happy, especially because he is back from injury. He is joining all the sessions and is very happy."

• On online abuse Fofana received afterwards, Maresca added: "Wes is happy, we are happy and there is nothing to add. If there is abuse on Instagram that's never good - not good for Wes or any player but is something that we unfortunately cannot control."

• The Chelsea boss also confirmed forwards Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku, who are subject to speculation about moves away, are both available but will not be with the squad to face West Ham as they are "waiting for some solution" around their futures.

• He added that it is "always better" if players away from first team "can find a solution as they will be more happy and the club the same".

• On if he needs to adapt his play without Levi Colwill in defence: "It is not in my mind not to play from the back. As we said many times, you can be more direct when teams are high pressing but it is not in my mind to play in a different way. We used Josh [Acheampong] in the last game, we are trying to find some internal situation and we will see."

• Pushed further about comments made last week on needing to bring in a central defender: "I said and repeat again - maybe I need to improve my English - we are looking for an internal solution and we will see if something happens."

• After their short pre-season, he feels with "more time we will get better and better" as the situation "is where it is and we need to adapt".

• On the future of defender Aaron Anselmino: "He is training with us. Training very hard. He is a fantastic boy, good player, but he needs to play games. He needs to go, he needs to play games so he is another one trying to find a solution."

Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea ideally want to do more than a deal every single day before the transfer deadline on 1 September.

They are targeting moves for Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho and RB Leipzig's versatile attacking midfielder Xavi Simons.

For those two moves to go through, they want to sell both striker Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku, while academy graduate Tyrique George would also see his game time reduced and is being allowed to explore both loan and permanent moves away from Stamford Bridge.

That's five deals but defender Aaron Anselmino is also allowed to leave on loan before the transfer deadline, with interest emerging from Dortmund.

Now, we reach the so-called 'bomb squad', which features Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell, Axel Disasi, Alex Matos, Alfie Gilchrist and David Datro Fofana. They are all for sale.

There is a limited chance for players to leave on overseas loan moves as Fifa limit overseas loanees to six players with four spots already filled.

That effectively rules out the chance to even offer loan with obligation to buy moves for the likes of Jackson, Nkunku and others before the transfer deadline.

Many of the clubs keen on Jackson, including Juventus and Napoli, would prefer to at least initially loan him, with at least £60m needed to sign him permanently.

In total, Chelsea are looking to sign, sell and loan 13 players in 12 remaining days, with negotiations, legal documents and medicals all needing to be done, drafted and organised to allow moves to go through.

In recent seasons, Chelsea have had late flurries for transfers before deadline day and again expect to be busy, with several transfer windows remaining open after those in the big five leagues close on 1 September.

Loan moves for academy trained players who are under 21 are exempt from the rules.

RB Leipzig have agreed personal terms with Liverpool and England Under-21 midfielder Harvey Elliott, 22, as Netherlands midfielder Xavi Simons, 22, looks close to completing a move to Chelsea. (Florian Plettenberg), external

Bournemouth have opened talks with Chelsea over a loan deal for France centre-back Axel Disasi, 27. (Sacha Tavolieri via Football Insider), external

BlueCo, the group that owns Chelsea and Strasbourg, has reached an agreement to sign Paraguay midfielder Julio Enciso, 21, from Brighton. (Athletic - subscription required), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

RC Strasbourg, the club owned by Chelsea's BlueCo owners in France, have brought in academy defender Genesis Antwi to pitch their project.

Antwi played in Chelsea's Under-21's win over Manchester City on Monday but could move to Strasbourg on a permanent deal as they target a new right-back signing before deadline day.

Strasbourg also want an attacking option and have contacted representatives of Brighton winger Julio Ensico and Southampton's Sam Edozie.

Chelsea are set to increase their efforts to sign Argentina forward Alejandro Garnacho from Manchester United but the 21-year-old will not be allowed to leave Old Trafford on the cheap. (Evening Standard, external)

Aston Villa are exploring the viability of a move to sign Nicolas Jackson from Chelsea but the asking price needs to be lower than £60m due to the West Midlands club's financial restrictions. (Telegraph - subscription required, external)

Meanwhile Bayern Munich's move for Christopher Nkunku has stalled, delaying Chelsea's attempts to sign RB Leipzig's 22-year-old Dutch midfielder Xavi Simons. (Guardian, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Will Faulks
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea went into Sunday's game against Crystal Palace on the back of a busy and successful summer which had built a rising tide of expectation around a team that finally looked to be coming together.

Enzo Maresca's side had played exceptionally well at times in the Club World Cup and ended up lifting the trophy. From front to back, everything was starting to click on the pitch, and so much quality had been added both to the first team and the bench. Fears about fatigue after that tournament had even been dispelled a little by bright and busy performances in the two friendly games last weekend.

One would have to look back to Thomas Tuchel's first pre-season at the club for the last time Chelsea were being taken this seriously as a contender on the eve of a new campaign.

In the end the game was a let down, with both sides struggling to put together coherent attacking moves. One would have been forgiven for thinking that Chelsea had had three months off rather than three weeks given their lack of chemistry beyond the halfway line.

The ebullient mood at Stamford Bridge before kick off gradually deflated, with pre-match trophy boasting and flag-waving enthusiasm melting in the August sunshine. The appearance of Estevao Willian gave a spike to the energy levels in the second half, but even the thrilling Brazilian could only manage a couple of moments that got fans on their feet.

Nobody is panicking after just one game against a very good team, but the disappointment hanging in the air now is a reminder that raised expectations will bring their own issues to a team that's still very young and still trying to establish itself back at the top table of European football.

Find more from Will Faulks at Chelsea News, external

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea defender Renato Veiga has agreed personal terms with Spanish club Villarreal.

The Portugal international, 22, is ready to join the Spanish club - who have qualified for the Champions League this season - but difficult negotiations continue over the fee.

Chelsea are known to value Veiga at about £34m but the Spanish club are aiming to negotiate after Atletico Madrid failed to agree a fee last month.

There is hope in Spain that a deal can be struck for under £30m.

Veiga is deemed surplus to requirements even after a serious knee injury has ruled star defender Levi Colwill out for much of the season.

He is training with the so-called 'bomb squad' - a group of senior players away from the first team.

Veiga spent the second half of last season on loan at Juventus and has played 18 games for Chelsea having joined in an £12m move from FC Basel in 2024.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter at Kingsmeadow

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea winger Ryan Kavuma-McQueen made a statement that he is up to under-21s level, despite still being just 16 years old, in a 3-1 Premier League 2 victory over champions Manchester City on Monday night.

The youngster initially needed 15 minutes to find his level, but then delighted with a number of actions.

City's Lakyle Samuel, 19, looked physically superior in the first few one-v-one duels, but Kavuma-McQueen eventually got the better of his marker, coming close twice when cutting inside and shooting.

Kavuma-McQueen also made a rash challenge on goalkeeper Jack Wint to pick up a booking and was substituted in the 62nd minutes for new signing Jesse Derry, who joined in the summer from Crystal Palace.

However, he impressed in his eighth appearance and third start at this level.

Kavuma-McQueen's inclusion is an example of the current academy strategy, which follows the first team and partner club Strasbourg in driving down the average age of all their sides.

New Under-21s coach Calum McFarlane's first XI had an average age of 17.7, with Kavuma-McQueen the youngest starter, having been born a few months after fellow 16-year-old Reggie Walsh.

Of course, Walsh has already made his senior debut and is the Blues' third-youngest player - and the youngest in European competition, having played in both Conference League semi-final legs against Djurgarden last season.

The real star was striker Shumaira Mheuka, who scored all three goals - two headers either side of half-time, and another on the counter-attack in the 86th minute to seal victory after Samuel had pulled one back.

It served to highlight Mheuka's readiness, not only to lead the line at academy level, but also knock on the door of Enzo Maresca's first team again, having made his debut last season.

This was an early marker of who is ready to star at this level, who can step up from the lower age groups and whether Chelsea are title contenders while under the leadership of former Manchester City academy boss Glenn van der Kraan.