Chelsea have teased their new shirt numbers for the 2026-27 season, suggesting a two members of the first-team squad have been stripped of their spots.

The Blues took on Real Sociedad in their final pre-season fixture of the summer on Saturday, winning 3-1 thanks to a Joao Pedro brace and a debut goal from £116million signing Morgan Rogers.

Enzo Fernandez made his return to action as a second half substitute, receiving a mixed reaction from supporters inside Stamford Bridge upon taking over the captain’s armband from Reece James.

Meanwhile, summer signings Maxence Lacroix and Pep Chavarria made their first appearances for the club.

What was interesting to note was the shirt numbers both players wore. Lacroix had No5 which is currently owned by Benoit Badiashile and Chavarria had No29 which has belonged to Wesley Fofana for a number of seasons.

The Frenchman, instead, wore No3 which has been vacant for a short time following Marc Cucurella’s move to Real Madrid.

Elsewhere, Valentin Barco - who remained an unused substitute - was given the No4 shirt which Tosin Adarabioyo has worn for Chelsea during the pre-season preparations.

Neither Badiashile or Adarabioyo were in the matchday squad against Real Sociedad and understands they are among the players expected to move on before the end of the transfer window.

The latter is attracting interest from Benfica and top-flight clubs, while Chelsea have agreed a loan deal with Napoli for Badiashile, including an option for a permanent transfer at the end of the season.

However, a previous announcement from the Blues suggests Tosin and Badiashile haven’t yet officially been stripped of their shirt numbers.

“Supporters should note that during pre-season, the shirt numbers worn by all players may not be representative of their finalised squad numbers for the 2026/27 campaign,” a statement via the club’s official website read at the start of the month.

“Further detail on this will be provided in due course.”

With that said, Chelsea are expected to announce their squad numbers for the new season before facing Fulham and this weekend’s decision might be a sign of what’s to come.