Liam Rosenior has already outlined exactly what he would want from any potential Chelsea signing in the January transfer window
Liam Rosenior has earned Chelsea millions in prize money(Image: Photo by Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Chelsea have been given a huge boost ahead of the January transfer window deadline. The Blues secured a handsome sum from the Champions League on Wednesday night, finishing in the top eight of the ‘league phase’ table and earning automatic qualification to the last 16.
Joao Pedro fired Chelsea to victory against Napoli at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, securing three mightily important points. The west Londoners came from behind to not only avoid the knockout phase play-offs next month, but also to bank millions more in prize money.
Like every other club in the Champions League, Chelsea will receive £16.18m from UEFA for participating. The European governing body offers £1.82m per win and £607k per draw, so the Club World Cup winners will be awarded a further £9.71m in performance-related bonuses.
UEFA also offers £239,000 per final position in the table, so the Blues banked a further £7.41m for finishing sixth place. On top of that, clubs that finish in the top eight and advance directly to the last 16 are awarded £9.56m for their efforts.
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In total, by defeating Napoli, Liam Rosenior earned the club an eye-watering £42.86m in prize money. Chelsea are yet to welcome any new faces to Stamford Bridge this month, so the windfall comes as a huge boost ahead of next week’s transfer window deadline.
Earlier this month, the Blues boss was asked whether he would welcome any arrivals this month – and, more specifically, a midfielder. Speaking to reporters at Cobham ahead of the 3-1 away win over Crystal Palace, Rosenior said: “Unfortunately, Dario picked up a really unfortunate injury.
“He slipped in training, and he’s going to be out for a while, over a month, which is a real shame because he’s an outstanding player as well, that I was really looking forward to working with. Romeo (Lavia)’s on the way back, which is great because he can say about every player, outstanding.
“He’s a very, very good player at a very high level. But in terms of my midfield options, you’ve got Enzo (Fernandez), Moi (Caicedo), Andrey Santos, Reece James. It’s not bad.”
Outlining what he would want from any potential signing, Rosenior said: “I’ve been really clear on this. I don’t want to bring in players that don’t enhance the group or the chemistry that we’re building.
“So we have to be very selective at this stage of the season. If we do bring in the right player in a certain position, they have to have a clear impact on the team.”
Lavia has since returned to partial first-team training on the grass at Cobham, while Dario Essugo remains unavailable. Nevertheless, this season, the January transfer window will close at 7pm on Monday, February 2.
So, if Rosenior does want to bolster his squad, the Chelsea sporting directors, Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, will have to get a move on…
