Chelsea must rue offloading star now worth £42m

Chelsea have made an excellent start to life under Enzo Maresca in recent months, with the Italian exceeding all expectations after his appointment from Leicester City during the off-season.

The 44-year-old has guided the Blues to third place in the Premier League after the opening 12 matches, sitting just a point off Manchester City, who have claimed the title four years in a row.

As for their Europa Conference League campaign, the club sit top of the new-look group stage, winning all four of their outings – remaining as the only one of two sides left in the competition with a 100% record.

Maresca has impressed supporters with his ability to lead the club in the right direction after numerous years of disappointing performances on the pitch under various managers.

However, he has owner Todd Boehly to thank for his recent success, given the American’s huge financial backing over the last few years at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea’s transfer window during the summer of 2023

Chelsea’s transfer window in the summer of 2023 will forever be one of the most iconic in English football’s modern history, with countless big-money additions arriving whilst also making a fortune in departures.

Moises Caicedo arrived in a £115m deal from fellow top-flight club Brighton, breaking the record for the most expensive departure in the history of English football.

However, despite the bonkers fee, he’s been a pivotal player since his arrival, producing countless pieces of magic, including his outrageous long-range effort against Bournemouth last season.

Christopher Nkunku was another arrival that window, costing the Blues a huge £52m after triggering the release clause in his contract at RB Leipzig.

He may have missed the majority of his first season in West London with injury, but he’s made a huge impact so far in 2024/25, scoring 11 times in all competitions – making him the highest scorer in the first-team squad to date.

Such additions were made possible by the ability to offload other first-team players, including Kai Havertz, who departed to join London rivals Arsenal in a £65m transfer.

However, it was the sale of one star that window that the hierarchy may live to regret given the nature of his fee and his performance levels since departing the Bridge.

The player who Chelsea sold and is now outperforming Palmer

Cole Palmer has been a phenomenal addition for Chelsea, joining for £40m from rivals Manchester City during the same window as Caicedo and Nkunku.

The 22-year-old has registered 52 goal contributions in his 59 appearances in all competitions for the Blues, ending the previous league season with the most combined goals and assists of any player.

However, in the early stages of the 2024/25 season, he’s been outperformed by former Blues star Christian Pulisic, who left in a £20m deal to join Italian side AC Milan.

The move has allowed for a fresh start for the USA international, taking his game to the next level during the opening months of the new season – subsequently leading to a huge jump in market value.

Pulisic has registered 13 combined goals and assists in Serie A and the Champions League in 2024/25, one more than Palmer who’s only been able to notch 12, despite four of them coming in one outing against Brighton.

As a result of the Milan ace’s form, his market value has more than doubled since leaving London, now being valued at £42m as per Transfermarkt.

The 26-year-old, who’s been dubbed “unbelievable” by coach Dan McCarthy, has put his career back on track after a stuttering stint in England where he scored just 26 times in 145 appearances – struggling to fill the boots left by Eden Hazard.

However, it’s excellent to see him finally reaching the potential that saw the club fork out the huge fee they paid for him, finally making the impact in Europe many expected him to.

It’s undoubtedly frustrating that the Blues fans have to watch the 26-year-old tearing it up away from their club after offloading him on the cheap, with his talents handing Maresca that added threat in attacking areas had they kept hold of the American.