Every Premier League Club Ranked by Squad Size (2024)

As the 2024/25 Premier League season quickly approaches, all 20 teams should be near-enough set for what is expected to be another campaign of high drama and spectacle. The transfer window has been open since June 14, and now with just under three weeks left until the arrival and departure lounges close for the next four months, there is not long left for managers to mull over further amendments.

What’s more, in the modern era, with increased number of substitutes allowed, quantity is valued just as much as quality, and GIVEMESPORT has taken a look at the squad sizes of every Premier League club nine days before Manchester United and Fulham raise the curtain on the new competitive season at Old Trafford.

Using Transfermrkt, there were no surprises about who took the top spot. But elsewhere up and down the country, there seems to be lots of room for new additions in a frantic end to this summer’s auctioning months as clubs gear up for a tit-for-tat battle to fend off relegation concerns and try their hand at achieving glory through European qualification or the coveted title.

Chelsea Crowned Biggest Squad

Surprisingly, Brighton have the same squad size

Since the arrival of Todd Boehly’s Clearlake Capital as new owners at Chelsea, the club have gone into hyperdrive nearly every transfer window. For this reason, it’s hardly a surprise that the Blues have the biggest squad. In total, the Blues have purchased 35 players and spent around £1.2billion, including nine-figure sums on Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, and hefty fees on Wesley Fofana, Mykhailo Mudryk and Marc Cucurella.

A big squad isn’t usually a bad thing. But when you consider that Chelsea have four goalkeeper that could easily start – Robert Sanchez, Dorde Petrovic, Gabriel Slonina and newest addition, Filip Jorgensen, and you account for the fact all these players must be paid, then there is a real chance Enzo Maresca’s side will run into dressing room and financial problems further down the line.

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Chelsea feature three times, while only one Saudi Pro League team makes an appearance.

Chelsea’s position so high up is hardly a surprise. However, not many would have expected Brighton to join them in the top spot. The south coast outfit also has 41 players, but both squads may suffer from a significant lack of experience next season as the two clubs also top the charts in the youngest average age, too.

Brighton and Chelsea’s nearest challengers to the number one position are Wolves and Newcastle, who both have 34 players within their ranks, while Aston Villa follow closely behind with 31.

Liverpool Have Second-largest Squad Among ‘Big 6’

The smooth operators have more players than their Manchester rivals

While Manchester City and Manchester United are well-known to be big spenders when the sun starts to peak through the clouds during the summer months, an interesting part of Transfermrkt’s data reveals that it’s Liverpool – with 30 players – who have the second-largest squad within the tradtional ‘big six’, with Tottenham also joining them with the same amount.

The Red Devils have been among the biggest movers this summer, signing Leny Yoro to make him the club’s most expensive teenage signing, as well as bringing in Joshua Zirkzee and looking at wrapping up deals for Mathijs De Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui.

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Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs De Ligt have been chased by United all summer, and the Red Devils are confident of securing a deal.

But with a squad size of just 28 – the same number as Man City, which ranks them below the likes of Southampton, Bournemouth, and Brentford – worrying statistics reveal they could find it tough should injuries continue to wreak havoc on their camp, with four of those players already sidelined.

Arsenal And Fulham Have The Smallest Squads

The London clubs currently own just 24 players

Under Mikel Arteta, and in direct contrast to their neighbours Chelsea, Arsenal have preferred merit to mass. This has been testified by the way in which they spend a lot, but on one or two key players, as shown by the £115m signing of Declan Rice last summer, and the £38m arrival of Riccardo Calafiori this time around.

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Arsenal and Chelsea are at totally opposite ends of the table.

However, as Arteta sets his sights on a first Premier League title for the club in 20 years, it appears as though they are neglecting the ethos surrounding ‘strength in numbers’. With just 24 players on their wage books, there is very little room for the Gunners to rotate their lineups and give key players a rest – which has intensified with the recent clamour around Bukayo Saka being overplayed at such a young age.

For a club whose ambitions are ever so lofty, Arsenal being situated last in a table that reveals squad sizes makes for a worrisome read for their fanbase. They are joined at the bottom by Fulham, who will also be hoping to build on last season’s good fortune, which saw The Cottagers finish 13th.

Everton and Leicester City, meanwhile, only have one extra player than the bottom-placed clubs amid relegation fears, while Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town, and West Ham own 26 players each.