Chelsea officially announced the joining of a new player, and suffered a major injury.
On September 12, 2025, Premier League giant Chelsea ushered in a happy and sad mood on the same day: on the one hand, it officially announced the signing of Ligue 1 Strasbourg's forward star Emerga, but on the other hand, it was bad news that the main new player Lian Delapp will be injured for a long time.
7 years of long appointment! Chelsea locks in Ligue 1 22-year-old forward star
Chelsea official announced on the evening of September 12 that it had reached an agreement with the French Ligue 1 team Strasbourg to sign 22-year-old striker Emerga. According to well-known transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, the Blues paid about 25 million euros in transfer fees for this.
However, the deal will be officially completed in the summer of 2026. Emerga himself hopes to continue to play in Strasbourg for one season to further hone his skills and accumulate experience.
The Nigerian French striker has performed well in recent years. Last season, he scored 14 goals and contributed 3 assists in 27 appearances in Ligue 1, showing his strong finishing ability and impact. So far this season, he has scored 3 goals in the first four games, continuing his hot form.
Emega will become the fifth striker introduced by Chelsea after coach Enzo Maresca took office. Previously, the Blues had signed Felix (sent away), Joao Pedro, Liam Delapp and Mark Ghiu in the past year.
This signing once again highlights Chelsea's transfer strategy changes in the Todd Burley era: from introducing famous stars in the past to investing in young talents with huge growth potential.
It is worth mentioning that since the acquisition of Chelsea by the Burley Consortium, Strasbourg has become an important "talent reserve base" for the Blues. Last season, Andre Santos, Angelo, Kaleb Willie and Djord Petrovic were loaned to the team for training.
This summer, Chelsea sold Matthias Amogu, Ishi Samuels-Smith and Ben Chilwell to Strasbourg permanently. In addition, Mamadu Saar, Mike Penders and Kendri Perez also joined the Ligue 1 team on loan.
40 million new players were injured for 12 weeks, Chelsea's forward was in a hurry
At the same time, Chelsea has suffered a heavy blow: forward Liam Drapp, who has introduced for 40 million euros this summer, will be out for 10 to 12 weeks due to injury.
The 21-year-old England center left the court with a hamstring injury after only 13 minutes of appearance in the game against Fulham at the end of August. At first, the injury seemed not serious, but subsequent examinations showed that the injury was more serious than expected. According to The Athletic, he will not resume training until the end of November at the earliest, which means he will be out until at least December.
This injury is undoubtedly a major loss for Chelsea. Drapp will miss a number of key battles including away matches against Bayern Munich, Premier League matches against Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.
What is even more worrying is that Chelsea's forward line is currently stretched. After selling Noni Maduaike, Joao Felix and Christopher Nkunku, Maresca only two regular centers, Delapp and Joao Pedro, are available. Now that Drapp has fallen, the burden of offense has almost all fallen on Pedro's shoulders.
In addition, core player Cole Palmer is also plagued by a groin injury and is suspected of playing.
Chelsea has urgently recalled young forward Mark Gyu in response to the crisis, but this is just a temporary solution. According to the Times, Maresca is considering more tactical flexibility, including trying to get new player Garnacho to play multiple roles on the front line.
Under the pressure of the intensive schedule between the Premier League and the Champions League, how to solve the shortage of front-line staff has become the biggest challenge for Maresca in the next few months.
