Chelsea make stunning Cole Palmer decision as £235 million quartet is being excluded from UEFA squad.

Cole Palmer will be unavailable for the group phases of Chelsea’s Europa Conference League campaign, as the club has elected to manage the players’ workloads.

Cole Palmer has been excluded from Chelsea’s Europa Conference League roster, which is an extraordinary decision.

The Blues’ talisman, who was acquired for £42 million on transfer deadline day in 2023, will be unavailable for the period of the competition’s group stage. The tournament’s knockout stages will allow for the addition of three players to the squad, provided that the roster size of 25 is not exceeded.

Palmer will be accompanied by Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana on the sidelines as the Blues endeavour to balance the workload of their players. Lavia, who arrived at Stamford Bridge in a £58m transfer, played only 32 minutes due to ankle and hamstring injuries, while Fofana missed the entirety of the previous season due to injury.

Ben Chilwell, who was informed by Enzo Maresca that he is not included in his plans for the upcoming season, has also been excluded from the squad. A transfer away from the club has not been achieved by the erstwhile Leicester star.

In their inaugural season in the Conference League, Chelsea will face Gent (home), Heidenheim (away), Astana (away), Shamrock Rovers (home), Panathinaikos (away), and Noah (home). Eight of the 36 teams involved will advance directly to the last 16, while the remaining 16 will compete in a play-off to secure their spots.

With a 3-2 victory over Servette over the course of two legs, the Blues managed to qualify for the tournament. Christopher Nkunku scored two penalties and Noni Madueke scored to secure Chelsea’s advancement.

It is not the first time that Chelsea has experienced the exclusion of significant players from the European squad in recent seasons. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Benoit Badiashile, Noni Madueke, and David Datro Fofana were all excluded from the 2023 January transfer window, which was characterised by an active transfer window under Graham Potter.

Chelsea’s roster for the European Conference League

Robert Sanchez, Filip Jorgensen, and Lucas Bergstrom are the goalkeepers.

Defenders: Axel Disasi, Marc Cucurella, Tosin Adarabioyo, Benoit Badiashile, Levi Colwill*, Reece James, Malo Gusto, Josh Acheampong*, Renato Veiga

Enzo Fernandez, Noni Madueke, Carney Chukwuemeka, Christopher Nkunku, Jadon Sancho, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Moises Caicedo, Cesare Casadei, Tyrique George, and Kiano Dyer are the midfielders.Attackers: Pedro Neto, Mykhailo Mudryk, Joao Felix, Nicolas Jackson, and Marc Guiu.

* – Players identified on the B-list.