Chelsea fans were left somewhat disappointed by the end of the summer transfer window. Alejandro Garnacho's signing divided the opinion of the supporters. It remains to be seen whether he is able to bring his career back on track at Stamford Bridge. On the other hand, the Blues were heavily linked with but then missed out on signing players like Xavi Simons and Fermin Lopez late on.
Instead, Chelsea's last signing of the summer was Facundo Buonanotte. The Argentine was not even signed permanently. He was brought in on loan, without any option or obligation to buy.
There is no doubt that Buonanotte is a talent. But he has failed to establish himself in the Premier League. There have been flashes of quality here and there, but overall, he has come near to meeting expectations. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Leicester City, a club that got relegated, and was not able to become a regular starter for them.
So, there are doubts about how much he will be able to contribute for the Blues. And now, Buonanotte has not been included in Chelsea’s A OR B list squad for the UEFA Champions League.
Chelsea summer signing left out of Champions League squad
One can only wonder why Buonanotte was not named in the squad. It is worth mentioning that Chelsea have to maintain a positive transfer balance after being fined by UEFA earlier this summer.
Not registering Buonanotte might point to why Chelsea did not go all out and complete the signing of Simons, despite having agreed on personal terms months back. It might very well have been a strategic decision.
Anyways, overall, Chelsea have named a pretty strong squad for the Champions. One surprise inclusion was that one of Levi Colwill, who many expected to spend the entirety of the season out with an ACL injury. Is that a sign that he might return sooner than expected? Or are the Blues just keeping their options open in case he becomes available?