The Blues had just 26 days off between the Club World Cup final and their first pre-season outing. The truncated off-season has led to an apparent increase in long-term injuries, with Levi Colwill, Liam Delap, and Dario Essugo all spending months on the sidelines.

The Blues narrowly avoided a historically embarrassing defeat in a 2-2 draw at Qarabag where manager Enzo Maresca's rotation was questioned.

Chelsea have made UEFA aware of alleged racist abuse directed at “a number” of the club’s players during Wednesday’s Youth League meeting with Qarabağ in Azerbaijan.

Enzo Maresca had made seven changes from the line-up that faced Tottenham on the weekend, but, faced with a deficit at half-time, he was forced to turn to trusted lieutenants. Fernandez, Garnacho, and Delap replaced Andrey Santos, Jamie Gittens, and Tyrique George.

Chelsea have made seven changes or more for the past five matches in a row across all competitions. They have now made 85 changes to their starting XIs this season – the most of any Premier League side – across their 16 games.

The Blues have made the long trek to Azerbaijan to face Qarabag on Wednesday in the Champions League, and it might be a chance for a striker to deliver a statement

What do these accounts tells us about the funds from the sale? What has caused the delay? The Athletic explains

Enzo Maresca turned to his bench at half-time and it paid immediate dividends as Alejandro Garnacho powered home an equaliser shortly after the restart, but the Blues were unable to find a winning goal as they dropped more points in the league phase.