Chelsea will meet Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 of the Champions League.©AFP
Chelsea have dropped Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and omitted the new £36 million ($44 million) Benoit Badiashile is taking from their Champions League squad for the rest of the season. The Blues spent more than £300 million on eight new signings in the January transfer window. However, according to UEFA rules, only three new players are allowed to enter the knockout stage. Enzo Fernandez, whose £107m move from Benfica set a new British transfer record, has been included alongside Mykhailo Mudryk and loan signing Joao Felix.
That meant there was no room for Aubameyang either.
The former Arsenal captain had become a peripheral figure under Graham Potter, even before January’s spate of new signings.
In contrast, Badiashile has made an impressive start to his Chelsea career since joining from Monaco.
The centre-back was part of a defense that kept back-to-back clean sheets against Crystal Palace and Liverpool in his two appearances so far.
Chelsea will meet Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 of the Champions League.
The Germans organize the first leg on February 15 with the return at Stamford Bridge on March 7.
(This story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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