Xavi Simons signs, Levi Colwill backup, two deals - Chelsea's strongest squad for Crystal Palace

Enzo Maresca is in a race against time to build the strongest Chelsea squad possible ahead of the new Premier League season. The Blues have already welcomed lots of exciting new players to Stamford Bridge this summer, but they've shown no sign of slowing down.

The west Londoners began by signing Dario Essugo from Sporting. With Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley eager to bolster Maresca's attacking options, Chelsea swiftly wrapped up deals for Liam Delap and Joao Pedro.

As the Blues progressed to the latter stages of the Club World Cup, they signed Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund. Stewart and Winstanley eventually turned their attention to outgoings as they looked to raise funds for their next transfer.

Once the likes of Noni Madueke and Joao Felix were offloaded, Chelsea raced to secure Jorrel Hato's signature. While the west Londoners have forked out nearly £250m on new players this summer, they've raised more in sales (£205.7m) than any other team in the English top-flight.

And, there's still work to be done ahead of Sunday, August 17, when the Blues face Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge. So, with that being said, football.london has looked at what Chelsea's 20-man squad could realistically look like on the opening weekend of the new Premier League season.

Chelsea steer clear of Donnarumma

Robert Sanchez has enjoyed an excellent vein of form since returning to the starting lineup in March. The 27-year-old goalkeeper helped the Blues qualify for the Champions League in May before lifting the Club World Cup in July.

So, he's certainly earned his keep at Stamford Bridge – even with Gianluigi Donnarumma said to be on the market. football.london understands that Chelsea are not interested in signing the Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper and there have been no talks.

This means Maresca will have Sanchez and Filip Jorgensen at his disposal when the Blues face Oliver Glasner's side. Gabriel Slonina has regularly appeared on thee sidelines for Chelsea this summer, though it's unlikely that he'll make the matchday squad this weekend with just nine players allowed to be named on the bench.

Maresca has already solved Colwill dilemma

Maresca appears to have already found a replacement for Levi Colwill, who could be sidelined for much of the season after undergoing surgery on an anterior cruciate ligament injury. In fact, the Chelsea boss has plenty of options.

One of Trevoh Chalobah, Josh Acheampong or Hato could step into the left centre-half role for the Palace clash. The first of the three enjoyed a brief spell in the position alongside Tosin Adarabioyo at the weekend before he appeared to pick up a knock.

Chalobah later clarified that he's 'all good' on social media. Acheampong replaced the fellow Cobham graduate against AC Milan on Sunday afternoon, and he looked more than ready for the opportunity.

As for Hato, he's enjoyed a couple of brief spells at left-back in pre-season. Once the 19-year-old defender finds his feet in west London, he too could pick up from where Colwill left off, having previously played centre-back at Ajax.

Chelsea duo eye Premier League debut

Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez will be one of the first names on the teamsheet this weekend, but Essugo and Andrey Santos will be determined to make their Premier League debuts. The two new Chelsea youngsters will be hoping they can force themselves into the starting lineup by the end of the season.

Fortunately for Maresca, he's now got at least four fit midfielders at his disposal for the Palace clash. Previously, Caicedo and Fernandez were often overworked, with Romeo Lavia not always fit.

Chelsea sign either Simons or Garnacho

Maresca will be hoping to add either Xavi Simons or Alejandro Garnacho to his squad ahead of Sunday's clash against Palace. As it stands, the ninth and final place on the bench could go to Tyrique George, but Chelsea seem determined to bring in at least one new forward.

football.london understands there is still an expectation and confidence that Chelsea will eventually sign Simons. The west Londoners have remained in contact with RB Leipzig, with talks ongoing, but the Bundesliga outfit were previously focused on resolving up Benjamin Sesko's future.

Meanwhile, football.london understands that Chelsea are also in talks with Manchester United to sign Garnacho. The Blues are long admirers of the 21-year-old winger, who wants to leave Old Trafford this summer.

It's understood that Chelsea considered making a move for the Argentina international as recently as the January transfer window, but a switch never materialised. As it stands, it remains to be seen whether or not the Blues can agree a deal for Garnacho, who's been training separately from the first-team at Carrington.

So, this is what Chelsea's 20-man squad could look like...

When Chelsea face Palace, Maresca will likely field a starting lineup that looks something like this: Robert Sanchez; Marc Cucurella, Trevoh Chalobah, Tosin Adarabioyo, Reece James; Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez; Jamie Gittens, Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto; Joao Pedro.

Meanwhile, the substitutes bench could look something like this: Filip Jorgensen; Josh Acheampong, Jorrel Hato, Malo Gusto; Dario Essugo, Andrey Santos; Estevao Willian, Liam Delap, Xavi Simons (from RB Leipzig) or Alejandro Garnacho (from Manchester United).