Chelsea has not appealed the ban and should not bother now

Chelsea faces a transfer ban that they could have appealed but have so far opted not to. With the window open, they may as well stick to their punishment.

For months, the specter of a transfer ban has loomed over Chelsea. An appeal could have frozen the ban temporarily, but Chelsea has so far opted not to appeal.

The transfer window is already open, but the work of the window does not start the day the window opens. Clubs begin their work months in advance. The Blues may have been planning for the eventuality of a ban and the eventuality of a delay at the same time, but their indecisiveness has made the decision for them.

Chelsea could yet opt to appeal, but how long would that take? Rumors have ranged from before the Europa League final to the end of June. Simply put, any days banned in a window is too many. Chelsea is now playing the long game whether they meant to or not.

Take Luka Jovic for example. He has been linked heavily to Chelsea, but recent reports have pointed towards Real Madrid finishing the deal. Eintracht Frankfurt may wait to see if a bidding war ensues, but they will not wait for Chelsea to enter the arena. That will be the case for any and every potential target Chelsea could have. The Blues are starting the race in the back.

Since the Blues have not yet appealed, it makes more sense now to just accept the ban for this window and January and be open to a full window next summer. The Blues can then start on a level playing field with the rest of the market rather than behind.

For the squad, that means reports of Mateo Kovacic and Gonzalo Higuain being able to join permanently despite the ban will surely come to fruition. The loan army, currently 41 players strong, will need to fill in the gaps. Maurizio Sarri, if he opts to stay without being able to strengthen his squad, will need to show he can make his tactics work with whoever is available.

The alternative is Chelsea appeals and enters the market late this summer to find the leftover scraps. Then they would miss out on January and likely next summer as well. It would be a poor idea to both start this window late and then not be able to buy again until a January window where options are slim.

Make no mistake, failing to appeal so far is an absolutely abhorrent neglect of duty on the part of those responsible. But their indecisiveness has now made the decision for them. Chelsea’s best play is to just accept the ban for now and for January and use this season to bring the loan army into the fold.

The year in between can be used to plan for next summer’s window. Chelsea should be sitting on a pile of cash by then and should be well aware of their needs. Better to do that that try to shove things together on the fly now.