New Chelsea signing left out of pre-season squad after injury blow in second game

Chelsea striker Emmanuel Emegha has not travelled with the squad for the pre-season tour after picking up a hamstring issue.  

The Blues will depart for Sydney on Friday for the tour of Australia and Asia, kicking off against Western Sydney Wanderers on Tuesday before games against Tottenham, Juventus and AC Milan.

Xabi Alonso picked a 27-man squad for the trip with captain Reece James and new signing Morgan Rogers not part of the group, currently on holiday after England’s semi-final run at the World Cup.

Emegha is also absent having picked up an injury in a behind-closed-doors friendly match against Bromley this week.

The Netherlands international scored in the 3-0 win over the League One side, having also found the back of the net against Crawley Town on Saturday.

That bright start to pre-season has been interrupted by a hamstring issue with the player remaining in London.

BBC Sport report he is expected to miss games on the Australian leg of the tour against Sydney Wanderers and Tottenham but could join the squad for high-profile games in Asia against Juventus and Milan.

After confirming their travelling squad, Chelsea said in a statement: ‘Several other first-team players are expected to join the Blues squad during the tour.’

Emegha was signed by Chelsea last year, spending the 2025-26 season on loan at Strasbourg, scoring eight goals in 18 appearances.

The 23-year-old missed large portions of last season through injury however with a hamstring problem ruling him out for nine games.

A muscle tear saw him miss four months of action from December to April, missing 20 games in total, while a dead leg sidelined him for the remaining four games of the season.

Geovany Quenda, another new arrival at Stamford Bridge having joined from Sporting CP, was another not included in the pre-season squad with the reason for his absence currently unclear.