Which of these young Chelsea talents is the best?
Chelsea’s youth system is flourishing with talent whether it be players still at the club or loaned out across Europe. While Jose Mourinho wants instant success now, the talent in the ranks suggests it may be in store in the future too.
We have compiled a list of the top 11 talents to watch…
Jeremie Boga
Jeremie Boga’s potential is frightening. He broke into Chelsea’s under-21 team at just 15-years-old and began immediately influencing games by scoring and creating goals. The Frenchman is a playmaker who has lived in England since he was 12, and scored against Barcelona for the NextGen Series side in early 2013. He turns 17 in January 2014 and it surely will not be long until he is pushing the first team.
Cristian Cuevas
Chelsea signed Cristian Cuevas over the summer from Chilean side O’Higgins. The left-winger has been loaned to Vitesse Arnhem for the season and featured during the summer for Chile’s under-20 World Cup team where he was controversially sent off for a late tackle. Cuevas’ dribbling and trickery frequently leave defenders standing, and he is rated as one of South America’s most promising young players.
Islam Feruz
Chelsea upset Celtic when they tempted teenager Islam Feruz away from the club a couple of seasons ago, with the striker very highly rated. Feruz is a quick-footed striker who featured for Chelsea’s first team in pre-season, and bagged a hat-trick for Scotland’s under-21 side last year against Switzerland.
Nathan Ake
Nathan Ake’s talent is no secret at Chelsea, with the Dutchman picked by Rafa Benitez in the knockout stages of last season’s successful Europa League run. Ake can play in both central defence and central midfield, and has been compared to Ruud Gullit in terms of playing style, and his hairstyle too.
Stipe Perica
Chelsea signed Stipe Perica in summer 2013 and loaned him out to Dutch side NAC Breda. Perica is a Croatian striker who bagged eight goals in 20 games in his homeland last season, going onto feature at the under-20 World Cup. The 18-year-old is 6ft 3 and an imposing figure already for defenders to deal with.
Lucas Piazon
Lucas Piazon has long been tipped for the very top at Chelsea, as the club’s next Brazilian star. Piazon is a playmaker who led Chelsea to Youth Cup glory in 2011, before making his first team bow last season. He was then loaned out to Malaga, and the 19-year-old is now one of many sent to Vitesse Arnhem in Holland for the season.
Izzy Brown
West Brom were gutted to lose talented Izzy Brown to Chelsea this summer, with the midfielder named on the bench by the Baggies last season at just 16. He has already been scoring for Chelsea’s under-21 side, wasting no time in making an impression. Brown can play in a variety of midfield roles, but his best assets are shown when he is played in a more advanced position, often out wide.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Loftus-Cheek started alongside established internationals like Fernando Torres in Chelsea’s post-season friendlies in the USA at the end of last season, indicating just how highly thought of he is at the club. The 17-year-old is a box-to-box midfielder who is claimed to already earn more than £1 million a year, and is a box-to-box midfielder capable of influencing games at either end of the pitch, and has even been linked with Barcelona.
Nathaniel Chalobah
Chalobah is an England under-21 regular who starred at Watford last season under the tutelage of Gianfranco Zola. The Chelsea legend says he wants to bring 18-year-old midfielder Chalobah back to the Hornets for the season, in a move which would be beneficial both parties at the present time.
Kenneth Omeruo
Nigerian centre-back Kenneth Omeruo is one of the most highly rated young African footballers around, already a senior international for Nigeria. The 19-year-old impressed with Eredivise side ADO Den Haag last season. A shoulder injury has delayed his 2013/14 season, where Jose Mourinho had previously hinted he could become an option for the first team.
Charly Musonda
Musonda is the son of a former Zambian international footballer of the same name, but is a Belgian youth international. The 16-year-old has been compared in style to Eden Hazard, and is clearly at the right club if he wants to emulate the star. Musonda broke into the under-21 side along with Boga and the pair could be the most talented of the lot.
Which one has the best chance of breaking into the first team?
image: © EG Focus
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