Chelsea have allowed numerous departures this year, with one player currently exiled from the developing team in Spain
Mamadou Sarr had a nightmare six months at Chelsea before going out on loan again. The Senegal defender joined Liam Rosenior from Strasbourg at Stamford Bridge at the start of 2026 and made four starts before playing just nine minutes before the end of the season.
Sarr was named in the starting XI for the FA Cup games against Wrexham and Hull City, and he was also left out of the Premier League game against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. The 21-year-old has rarely put a foot wrong, but his next outing against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League came to an end.
With the Blues already 5-2 down, Sarr failed to deal with a long forward minutes into the second leg at Stamford Bridge. The ball hit the back of his leg, which allowed Khvica Kvaratskhelia to cross the goal.
Sarr was benched for the next few games and then Rosenior was sent off, ending any realistic chance of a return to the lineup. Sarr opened that period of his career by joining Real Sociedad on a temporary basis last summer.
He told L’Equipe: “It was really hard – a rollercoaster. I was coming back from the AFCON and I was on a cloud. I started playing, I had good matches, [but] The one against PSG and that mistake came early.
“[Then] there was no news. No signs of life. The first week was terrible with criticism. And Rosenior, who brought me, was quickly dismissed.
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“It was very difficult not to do my job anymore, to stay on the bench and watch my teammates play, especially without any explanation. Then I thought I would play in the World Cup, but if I didn’t have the rhythm, I didn’t.
“I am living again, I had to be patient and find the best way out [of Chelsea]. I was hungry, very hungry. I only wanted one thing: to play football […] I rediscovered the atmosphere of Lyon somewhat. A very good club at the sporting level and also a family club that trusts young players. “Real Sociedad is the perfect club for me.”
Sarr’s new club have started the season strongly and are currently in 5th place in La Liga. After three games of the Europa League, it is fourteenth in the standings.
He played in all three of those European trips and also made six domestic starts, playing a total of 733 minutes across those two competitions, moving on for a few weeks in the 2026/27 season.
While the move has been confirmed by Xabi Alonso, he could do so with Sarr’s availability following an injury to Maxence Lacroix, which looks set to keep him out until the new year.
Club captain Reece James and Joao Pedro are other key players injured, while Emiliano Martinez, Jamie Gittens and Jorrel Hato are also recovering. Jordan Henderson missed the win over Manchester United through illness but is expected to return for this Sunday’s trip to Sunderland.