How many players and staff have Chelsea signed from Brighton under Todd Boehly?

Cameron Smith

• 21 Mar 2024 04:30 CDT
• 4 min read

Chelsea have taken a major step backwards since Roman Abramovich’s departure in 2022, with the Blues slumping to mid-table obscurity despite the huge investment made by Clearlake Capital.

The Blues, who are now co-owned by Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, have made a clear plan to prioritise a long-term project rather than immediate success and this strategy has seen them sign some of the most highly-rated young players in world football.

Furthermore, Chelsea have also brought in a significant portion of Brighton & Hove Albion’s backroom staff following the Seagulls’ recent success at signing talented youngsters.

READ MORE: How much have Chelsea spent on transfers under Todd Boehly?

Chelsea’s aim is to cut out middle man clubs like Brighton and sign talented teenagers directly from source in order to save millions on transfer fees in the long run.

In their hopes of achieving this goal, the Blues have signed a significant number of players and staff from Brighton.

Below, FootballTransfers runs through everyone that Chelsea have poached from Brighton since Boehly and Eghbali took charge.

READ MORE: Chelsea's 10 most expensive transfers of all time

Which players have Chelsea signed from Brighton since 2022?

Chelsea’s first major signing from Brighton came before they began dismantling the Seagulls’ backroom staff. Marc Cucurella moved to Stamford Bridge for a whopping €65.3 million in 2022 after the Blues fought off competition from Manchester City to sign the Spaniard.

He was joined at the club by Moises Caicedo (€116m) and Robert Sanchez (€28.7m) in 2023.

Before Cucurella signed for Chelsea, the club had already purchased teenage youngsters Shumaira Mheuka and Zak Sturge. In 2024, Chelsea were told they were required to pay a €1.2m initial compensation fee for Mheuka and a €1m fee for Sturge. Those figures could rise substantially to a combined €9m with potential add-ons.

Which members of staff have Chelsea signed from Brighton since 2022?

Chelsea’s recruitment of Brighton’s assets doesn’t just involve players - it also extends to backroom staff.

The Blues famously paid Graham Potter’s €25m compensation fee to appoint him as Thomas Tuchel’s replacement back in September 2022, with Billy Reid, Bjorn Hamberg, Bruno Saltor, Ben Roberts and Kyle Macauley all following him from Brighton to Stamford Bridge.

Potter was sacked after just seven months in the hotseat at Chelsea, and Roberts and Macauley are the only members of his backroom staff still at the club.

Paul Winstanley became Chelsea’s sporting director in December 2022, joining from Brighton, and he was accompanied in that role by Laurence Stewart, who arrived from AS Monaco in February 2023.

Sam Jewell became the latest member of staff to swap Brighton for Chelsea in February 2024, when it was announced that he had accepted an offer to head up Chelsea’s global scouting network and take charge of player negotiations. Jewell was placed on gardening leave by Brighton following his decision to leave the Seagulls and will be unable to begin his work at Chelsea until late 2024.

Interestingly, Jewell had replaced Winstanley as Brighton’s head of recruitment before opting to join Chelsea.

In total, Chelsea have signed 13 players and staff members from Brighton since Boehly and Eghabli arrived in 2022.