Victor Moses and several Chelsea players, all aged 23 and over, have been left without clear plans for the first half of the season after the top European leagues’ transfer windows closed until January.
As things stand, Chelsea have listed 27 players for the Premier League and 25 (21 A-list and four B-list) players for the Champions League group stage, as seen on Chelsea’s official website.
Unlike the Champions League squad, which can’t be altered (except for the B list) until the knockout phase, Chelsea could still register players in their Premier League squad until the 20 October deadline.
Given Frank Lampard already has plenty of options in each position, however, squad changes seem unlikely.
That means the likes of Victor Moses, Charly Musonda, Danny Drinkwater, Baba Rahman, and Jake Clarke-Salter, who aren’t in the squad, risk missing out on senior football until the transfer window reopens in January.
To avoid that, they have to secure a loan or permanent exit to a Championship club or any club from several other top divisions whose transfer windows remain open in the next few days.
Russia and Portugal, whose transfer window will only close on 17 and 25 October respectively (ESPN), could be a couple of options.
Moses’ case might be a bit more complicated than the other outcasts since his contract with Chelsea expires this summer.
Chelsea would be understandably reluctant to let the 29-year-old join another club on loan this season, allowing him to leave on a free transfer at the end of the season.
A one-year extension before any loan move may be possible, although neither Chelsea nor Moses would like to go down that route.
There were rumours about Moses’ return to Serie A with Inter Milan, where he spent last season on loan, but the move failed to materialise.
