No pressure, boys. Just got to match last season’s achievements of winning the U17 Premier League Cup and the U18 Southern Division League title. The group has lost at least 7-8 England internationals to the U21s, but with the talent they’re adding and Hassan Sulaiman still in charge, I’m sure they’ll be doing everything to even try exceed last year’s group.
And that’s what Cobham has done in their most successful times. The main reason we won the FA Youth Cup 5 times in a row, an achievement which will most likely be never done again by any other club, was because of the added pressure the previous group had placed on them, and the experiences handed out to the younger players.
Club Captain Reece James was starting U18 games as a 16-year-old, he would have learnt from the likes of Tammy Abraham and Dominic Solanke as to what it takes to succeed at the youth level, and used that knowledge to go and win it under Jody Morris and Joe Edwards consecutively.
Whether it’s Kiano Dyer, Frankie Runham, Ollie Harrison, Shim Mheuka or any of the U16s called upon, that cycle of knowledge begins again. This group perhaps does not scream of a quadruple winning squad, but I most certainly wouldn’t put it past them – they’ve shown they know how to win.
Despite last year’s incredible achievements, there’s a strong argument that they still underachieved. Favourites of the Youth Cup, they were knocked out in a huge upset via a penalty shootout to Millwall, they failed to beat Leicester in the PL Cup and heavily underperformed in the National League Final against Manchester United, thus failing to qualify for the UEFA Youth League.
And a lot of these boys I’m about to talk about were involved in that. They would’ve learnt what it takes to win these sort of games, and how just having 11 better players on the pitch doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll go home happy. So, now it’s about using the pain they endured to take responsibility, step-up when needed, fight every minute for every duel and most importantly, develop as a player and as a group.
Goalkeepers:
Jack Austin, Kai Crampton and Hudson Sands will share the minutes around this season, with opportunities available for one or two to step up to the U21s if needed too. With Luke Campbell and Ted Curd both out on loan this season, that has left Max Merrick between the sticks for the U21s, and so minutes for all four goalkeepers will no doubt be shared across the two groups.
I can’t say I’ve watched much of Jack, Kai or Hudson, but in their appearances so far for the U18s/U17s, they have looked solid and assured. A strong goalkeeper can go a long way in winning some nitty-gritty games at this level, so let’s hope they can all win us some points along the way.
Defenders:
Marcell Washington is a second-year-scholar, and sadly I don’t think a lot of you would have heard of him! Unfortunately, he spent most of last season sidelined due to injury and I believe is in a similar situation at the moment, but he isn’t too far from returning (if he hasn’t already) and will want to impress at Left-Back.
Although, he’s certainly got competition. Harry McGlinchy made his U18s debut last season on the final day against Arsenal, where he impressed, running up and down the left-hand side and creating chances. Signed from Plymouth Argyle a couple years ago, he’s been a strong player in the age groups, even representing (and picking up an appearance) Republic of Ireland in the U17s European Championship.
Genesis Antwi has featured for the U18s in most of pre-season, and like we saw on multiple occasions last season, has absolutely stood out. He plays fullback/wingback on both sides with complete ease, and the way he drives and dribbles with the ball to create chances is just a joy to watch. He heavily impressed for Sweden in the U17 Euros a couple months ago, by far being one of the standout players in the tournament. Definitely one to keep an eye on. Dare I say it, and very immaturely – Cobham have managed to do it again at fullback?
Saheed Olagunju and Tayo Subuloye have started most games in pre-season at centre-half together, and you’d suspect to see them both feature a lot this season. Saheed is this incredibly tall centre-half, yet comfortable on the ball and has a good passing range. He’ll be looking to be a main-stay in this team and use his physical advantages. Tayo is getting grips of playing at centre-back after only recently moving to the position, and is showing good signs. He’s another one who has seemed to have had a bit of a growth-spurt recently, and after captaining the U16 side to victory in the National Final, he’ll be wanting to cement that other centre-back spot.
Joseph Wheeler-Henry remains an absolute physical demon, with the former sprinter being one of the quickest players I’ve ever watched. His shifts have come mostly at right-back in pre-season, but he’s also able to play at centre-back, and his versatility will definitely come of use with Antwi expected to get minutes on both sides. He definitely uses his pace to his advantage in some recovery defending at times, but to be totally honest – who can blame him? Kyle Walker did it the whole of his career and we saw the level he played at.
Midfielders:
Harry Rodda was on trial at Chelsea for most of last season, and signed for the Blues after successfully being offered a scholarship. Mainly a midfielder, he’s actually seen most of his minutes for the U16s and U18s (pre-season) at right-back, and again his ability to adapt to different situations makes him a very useful player to have around. Excited to see more of him and what he can offer.
Landon Emenalo, the son of the famous Michael Emenalo, is without doubt one to keep an eye on this season. The very intelligent left-footed midfielder is great on the half turn, very aware of his surroundings, and instrumental to the buildup of any team he features in. You’ll tend to find him quite deep and trying to get the ball up the pitch. Small in size, but isn’t easy to shrug off, and it makes him an exciting watch.
Sol Gordon signed for Chelsea as an U8 and has developed each season incredibly. He’s able to play across all roles in midfield, with there being a huge focus on driving up the pitch, creating chances and arriving into the box. He scored 19 goals and picked up 7 assists last season for the U16s/U17s, which is thoroughly impressive, and has looked really positive in pre-season. He will be pushing to get into that team for sure.
Ollie Harrison has a huge season upcoming. He joined the club last season from Newcastle, and featured a lot for the U18s, as well as captaining the U17s to PL Cup victory. Everyone at the club speaks very highly about his character and the way he treats training, so I suspect he’ll be one of the main leaders of this group who Hassan looks towards in times of need. He likes to drop deep, play short passes and keep the ball ticking – something I’ve criticised him a bit for as I think some of his movements are unnecessary at times, or he doesn’t play a more direct ball which he’s more than capable of doing so. Hopefully, from a personal perspective, I can see more of that game coming out from him as there’s no doubt a big reason as to why so many coaches love him.
Kiano Dyer is being mentioned in this article because he technically is an U18, and will most likely drop down to help the team in the FA Youth Cup, but everyone expects him to be with the U21s last season. Not many can say they started most PL2 games as a first-year scholar, but Kiano did, and will look to develop on that this season. I’ll talk a lot more about him in the U21s Academy Season Preview (keep an eye out for that) – he’s looked very impressive in pre-season under the new head coach.
Forwards:
Leo Cardoso was picked up alongside Kiano Dyer from West Brom and big things have been said about him for good reason. He’s a very technical and direct footballer, who sadly hasn’t been on the pitch that much due to injury. But, when he has, he’s been encouraging and will be looking to get as much game-time as possible. So far under Sulaiman, he’s mainly featured in the 10, but I feel he can sometimes go a bit missing there and I’d potentially like to see him back on the right-wing. Either way, if he stays fit, he’s going to be creating a lot of chances and scoring goals.
Yahya Idrissi is a versatile forward who has played in the 10, out wide and up front. The forward who loves a trick scored 19 times for the U16s last season and provided 14 assists, while representing Morocco on the international stage too. It’ll be interesting to see where he features this season and if he can push himself into the team.
Frankie Runham, alongside Ollie Harrison, has a huge season upcoming. The Mykhailo Mudryk lookalike signed as an U8 for Chelsea and has made his way all the way through Chelsea’s ranks, with his athletic abilities shining. He’d perhaps argue he’s best in the 10, but he’s looked as comfortable on both the left and right hand side too, and it makes him such a useful player. Frankie was the main guy in the U17 PL Cup run and in the final against Wolves was comfortably the best player on the pitch, taking responsibility and controlling the game. We need to see more of that from Runham this season, and I was speaking to someone at Cobham a couple weeks ago…you saw a huge explosion from Tyrique George in terms of output and affecting games as a second-year scholar – I want similar things this season from Frankie.
Kobe Barbour’s another one who signed as an U8 and has found himself playing on the wing with great 1v1 ability. Perhaps surprisingly when looking at the player for the first time, it’s not easy to shrug him off the ball and he uses his strength to dribble past players very well. He really impressed me last season in his few appearances for the U18s, so I’m really intrigued as to what he can offer to the team.
Shaun Wade is an Irish winger who once again will be looking to get some starts on his belt. He struggled to get game-time last season due to the likes of Runham, Tyrique George and Ato Ampah all impressing, but the stocky winger loves to dribble past a player and certainly isn’t afraid to defend the Chelsea badge. He scored a wonderful solo goal in pre-season so hopefully it’s the beginning of a good season for him personally.
Shim Mheuka is going to have a good season, it’s that obvious. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been a fan of the player, but what I’ve seen in the last few months and during pre-season has been quite frightening. He’s actually featured mostly for the U21s, starting ahead of multiple other strikers and that’s certainly been one advantage of there being a new head coach and academy management (more on that in the U21s article), but I reckon he’ll drop down to the U18s for game-time. I suspect, he’s going to take the division by a storm and if he was to start all 24 league games some Cobham records could be broken. The powerful and clinical striker was scoring for fun in pre-season, including against League One opposition, and is in good form. To think he is a first-year scholar is scary considering how much he played last year for the U18s, so there is definitely a lot more to come.
U16s:
Chelsea’s U18s have never been afraid to use the U16s if they need to, and you saw that last season with Tayo, Shim, Rio Ngumoha and multiple others. This season though, I think you may see even more involvement, both due to squad size and meritocracy. Calvin Diakite (CB), Ryan Kavuma-McQueen (winger) and Chizzy Ezenwata (ST) are most likely to get that push, with all three players being heavily involved for the U18s in pre-season.
Calvin is a strong left-footed centre-half, and while he uses his physical advantages he has at the moment to great success, it will be very interesting to see whether he can transfer that to senior academy football over the next few years. Ryan is a quick and technically sound winger who scored one of the greatest goals I have ever seen live last year in the U15 Final against Leeds at Kingsmeadow, and with Rio moving to Liverpool, he may sense an opportunity to make that breakthrough. Chizzy, not too dissimilar to Ryan, is a pacey forward who always seems to work very hard for the team and link-up very well with his teammates. I’m sure others will be given opportunities, but it’s worth keeping an eye on these three over the next year.
It’s going to be a fascinating season for the U18s and Hassain Sulaiman either way. A challenge for sure, with a big change of squad and not that many of the second-year scholars being regular starters last year, but that opens up opportunities for players to take their chance and beat the competition in front of them.
The boys kick things off against Brighton at Cobham on Saturday (11am) and 3 points would make it the perfect Saturday. Stream details TBC.
Let us know what you thought of this season preview and whether you had any extra thoughts on the players! You can find me on Twitter, Instagram, or TheChelseaSpot social platforms.
The Chelsea Spot 
Leave a comment