Chelsea wages: Who is the best paid player at the Blues and everything you need to know about Chelsea's salary bill

No surprises here as first-choice goalkeeper Robert Sanchez is also first on the list of the highest-paid Chelsea goalkeepers, followed closely by his deputy in Filip Jorgensen.

For someone who has played just one game for Chelsea since joining the club in 2021, Bettinelli earns perhaps a lot more than a third-choice goalkeeper might warrant, especially considering the wages of Sanchez and Jorgensen.

Finally, we have Finnish custodian Lucas Bergstrom, who earns the least among his fellow Blues goalkeepers.

Three players who have featured sparingly for Chelsea, albeit for different reasons, are the club's highest earners not only in defence but across the entire squad. These include Reece James and Wesley Fofana, both of whom have struggled to overcome persistent injury problems, and Ben Chilwell, who has fallen out of favor under coach Enzo Maresca.

Other defenders, such as Marc Cucurella, Tosin Adarabioyo, Levi Colwill, Benoit Badiashile, and Axel Disasi, also earn significant salaries. Meanwhile, Malo Gusto, Renato Veiga, and Josh Acheampong are among the lowest-paid defenders on the roster.

One might assume that Cole Palmer, arguably the team's standout player, would be the highest earner in the squad. However, he isn't even the highest-paid midfielder at Chelsea, with that distinction going to Argentine star Enzo Fernandez. In fact, club-record signing Moises Caicedo is higher up the ladder than Palmer, with the former Manchester City starlet ranking third on this list.

Much like Chilwell, Carney Chukwuemeka has been on the periphery under Maresca and isn't a part of his plans, yet he is earning over five million annually.

Among forwards, the highest-earning players are Christopher Nkunku and Pedro Neto, with the former earning in double digits annually.

Surprisingly, Joao Felix, Jadon Sancho, and Mykhailo Mudryk earn as much as, or even more than, striker Nicolas Jackson. Meanwhile, Noni Madueke and young forward Marc Guiu find themselves at the bottom of this list.

Not many teams can boast of a defender as their highest-earning player, but that is exactly what Reece James has managed to achieve at Chelsea. In fact, the next best earners in the squad are defenders, too: Chilwell and Fofana.

Nkunku and Fernandez fill the last two positions in the top five. Rather surprisingly, Palmer doesn't make this list...

The lowest-paid player on the Chelsea roster is 18-year-old prospect Josh Acheampong, who signed a contract extension in December 2024. He is followed by Italian youngster Casadei and goalkeeper Bergstrom. Veiga and Bettinelli finish the list as the fourth and fifth-least paid players of Chelsea.

So, what does this mean for the bigger picture? In which area of the pitch are Chelsea investing the most, and how much do they spend annually on first-team salaries?

The largest expenditure for the club is on the defence, with a total of over £67m allocated to this area.