UEFA's strict regulations have left many star players unfortunately excluded from European competition squads.

Written by Han Bing Who is the unluckiest new signing this summer? The 20-year-old Argentine midfielder Bonanotte, loaned from Brighton to Chelsea, is certainly one of them — in a Chelsea TV promotional video, he said he couldn’t wait to participate in the Champions League for the first time, "very excited." However, just two days later, Bonanotte was disappointed as UEFA's registration rules prevented him from being included in Chelsea’s Champions League squad announced on September 3rd.

Bonanotte has no reason to be discouraged. Firstly, there will be another registration opportunity for the Champions League knockout stage early next year; secondly, he is not the biggest name missing from this Champions League roster. Besides Chelsea teammates Sterling and Disasi, Tottenham’s summer €35 million signing forward Tiel and midfielder Bissouma, Liverpool’s young talent Chiesa, and Newcastle captain Russell also missed out on the Champions League squad. Additionally, Nottingham Forest’s record summer signings — forward Hutchinson (€43.5 million) and fullback Zinchenko — were not included in the Europa League squad.

The root cause behind these high-priced players missing out on European competition is UEFA’s stringent registration rules. The maximum squad size for UEFA competitions is 25 players, with registration categories divided into three groups: 17 spots for players who do not meet the “locally trained player” criteria, 4 spots for players trained by clubs in the same league, and 4 spots for players developed by the competing club itself. The “club-trained” standard requires a player to have been registered with the club for three full seasons or 36 months between ages 15 and 21; the “league-trained” standard requires the player to have been registered with other clubs in the same league for three full seasons or 36 months during that age range. If the club cannot fill the “club-trained” quota, the total squad size is reduced accordingly.

Beyond these strict registration conditions, the Premier League also has clubs like Chelsea that face UEFA sanctions, limiting their squad size for European competitions. UEFA required Chelsea to sell players from their original European squad before registering new signings for UEFA competitions. Chelsea sold players from last season’s Europa Conference League squad such as Madueke, Nkunku, Hall, and Amugu, loaned Jackson-Jackson to Bayern, and terminated Sancho’s loan to include seven expensive new signings in the Champions League squad. Additionally, Chelsea had to meet salary criteria for players on the list, and since Bonanotte joined only at the summer transfer deadline, he was excluded.

Due to Chelsea’s inability to meet the locally trained player quota, their UEFA A list included only 23 players. Besides Bonanotte (loaned for €2.3 million), defender Disasi (€45 million), winger Sterling (€56.2 million), and David Fofana (€12 million) were also left out, as well as Mudryk (€70 million), who is temporarily suspended due to doping allegations.

Newcastle United has no “club-trained” players, so their Champions League A list includes only 21 players, with captain and center-back Russel being left out. Tottenham has only one “club-trained” player, forcing them to exclude their €35 million summer signing forward Tiel. Liverpool’s 17-year-old prodigy N’Goumoha does not meet the “club-trained” criteria and occupies a non-locally trained player slot, which prevents the €12 million signing Chiesa from registering.

Additionally, Juventus listed 8 players on their B list, resulting in a total of 5 goalkeepers across their combined UEFA A and B lists, which allowed them to register 23 players on the A list.

Apart from being restricted by UEFA rules, players like Jesus (Arsenal), Dragusin, Kulusevski, Madison (Tottenham), and Doucoure (Crystal Palace) were excluded due to injuries. Also missing from European competition squads is Paris Saint-Germain defender Kimpembe.

In contrast, Chelsea registered Draper, who has been out injured for two months; Bayern included three seriously injured players — Musiala, Davies, and Ito Hiroki; Barcelona also registered goalkeeper Ter Stegen, who withdrew from La Liga registration due to injury, along with another injured player, Balde.

For clubs participating in European competitions from the top five leagues, UEFA’s strict registration rules have somewhat impacted their squad strength. Last season, Chelsea competed in the third-tier UEFA Europa Conference League without key players Palmer, Ravia, W. Fofana, and Chilwell in the main squad. However, after the group stage when their chances of winning increased, Palmer was added to the squad and became one of the key contributors to Chelsea’s Europa Conference League triumph. Before the knockout stage begins in February next year, clubs can still replace 3 out of 17 non-locally trained players, which might bring some surprises.