Chelsea can take 10 extra players as a part of the squad to Wembley
According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea will be able to include ten more players in their travelling party for the FA Cup final this weekend.
The decision was taken after a successful request from both Chelsea boss Frank Lampard and his Arsenal counterpart Mikel Arteta.
The original restrictions were placed due to the reservation of people permitted into the stadium. It would have been a grave injustice to leave behind those who had contributed to the journey but could not take part in the showdown.
Conversations between the clubs and the FA took place this past week to address this issue. Following that, the FA agreed to permit each team to bring 10 extra non-participating players to Wembley. This is not inclusive of the usual 20 who will be a part of the matchday squads.
This gives Lampard the opportunity to include injured youngster Billy Gilmour. The 19-year-old put in a brilliant performance in our 2-0 win over Liverpool and richly deserves to be at Wembley.
Chelsea are also dealing with injuries to key stars N’Golo Kante and Willian. Although both of them are expected to be fit, this gives them an opportunity to be there and experience the occasion rather than miss out.
Twenty players and 12 members of the coaching and medical staff per team were allowed in the red zone. Ten essential club staff are also, a figure shared between the two playing clubs.
According to the report, the extra players allowed on Saturday will also be allowed in the red zone and are permitted to be a part of any celebrations for the winning team. However, they will all have to provide the usual negative Covid-19 test.
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For Premier League games, ten directors, senior executives or non-essential staff per team were allowed in the amber zone. That number has also been doubled, with both Arsenal and Chelsea allowed to bring up to 20 club officials to the match.